Red Roses and Curses (Sleeping Beauty Inspired AU)
by princessthornofcassia
Summary: Eighteen years ago, Sophie was cursed as a child and taken away to Camelot. Eighteen years ago, Tedros met Sophie and grew up with her. Eighteen years ago, Agatha lost her parents and became a apprentice of Professor Sader's academy. Now on the final year, all three will find their lives intertwine with each other and realize that the story may not be what it seems.
1. The First Spell

_"On her eighteenth birthday, the princess shall prick her finger on a needle and fall into a sleep of eternity, until true love's kiss shall bring her back..."_

Sophie was cursed since a child.

It happened on her first birthday.

The whole kingdom of Galvadon was preparing for the birthday celebration of Princess Sophie's first birthday. Down every street, the stones were scrubbed clean and polished until it shone. Each window was cleaned and the trees were neatly cut. In the town square, ribbons of bright colors fluttered in the wind, and everyone's mood was in high festivities. For the first time since the war against the Winter Clans, there was hope.

Hope that rested on the shoulders of the next heir of Galvadon.

Everyone dressed in their brightest colors, from every color of the rainbow and gathered towards the huge golden gates of the castle, waiting for the royal couple to come and greet them. The sky was shockingly blue and not a cloud in sight. The people waited with anticipation and excitement, talking in hushed whispers and pinning their eyes on the balcony.

King Stefan and Queen Vanessa stepped onto the balcony, a beautiful baby girl in her arms, their faces wide with jubilant smiles and waving at the crowd. The crowd erupted into cheers, clapping and yelling as Queen Vanessa lifted up baby Sophie for everyone to see.

"People of Galvadon, it is my greatest pleasure and honor to welcome my daughter, Princess Sophie into the world!"

King Stefan's strong voice was heard among the cheers of the jubilant crowd and everyone's cheers grew louder. In that single perfect moment, no one could have been happier. The kingdom of Galvadon restored it's hope and happiness. King Stefan was about to become a father and Queen Vanessa couldn't have wished for a more perfect daughter.

"May we lead our country to a better place, may the war that plagues us be rid off and may our kingdom be as strong as ever!"

And after that single perfect moment...

It happened.

Something thin and dark sliced through the air, whistling with sound and was aimed directly at Queen Vanessa's neck.

A arrow.

Queen Vanessa gurgled, one arm still clutched tightly around her daughter and another flying up to her throat, before she collapsed onto her back. Pandemonium broke out through the crowd and everyone started screaming and crying, trying to run off before they were made the next target. King Stefan dropped down to his knees, horror written on his face as he took baby Sophie into his arms and shielded off his dead wife. The castle guards on the ground below immediately hunted for the mysterious assassin but with the panic and the chaos, proved useless. Guards swarmed around King Stefan, trying to get him off to safety.

And baby Sophie was gone in his arms.

"SILENCE!"

Everyone looked at the figure standing onto of one of castle turrets, their face shielded by a long black cloak, in their arms was Sophie. King Stefan gripped the railing, his blue eyes wide with fear. Not only was this figure dangerous, but something inhuman. A Winter Clan.

"Give me back my child!"

He roared into the silence and guards instantly nocked their crossbows at the figure. The figure slowly raised their hand and the bows instantly crumbled into ash, much to the guards shock. King Stefan glared at the figure, sweat beading on his face and his jaw clenched tight. Sophie was sleeping peacefully, unaware of the danger.

The figure lifted up her hood and grinned viciously at King Stefan, her eyes glowering darkly and her face impeccably pale.

"This is payback, King Stefan.."

The woman smiled darkly at him, as if he knew what exactly he had done. King Stefan slowly shook his head, the meaning seeping into his soul.

"No...please.."

He murmured, eyes pinned on the figure. The woman cocked her head to one side, no forgiveness inside her eyes.

"YOU TOOK AWAY EVERYTHING FROM ME! THIS IS REVENGE!"

She screamed and her eyes glowed green. The crowd trembled and King Stefan felt the dread slither deeper into his soul. He was powerless against her and he knew it.

The woman turned towards the crowd and they all silently trembled with fear. She cackled and her hands glowed with green smoke. The sky turned grey and thunder crackled loudly in the air.

"On dear precious Sophie's eighteenth birthday, she will be cursed and prick her finger on a needle and fall into a eternal sleep! No one can reverse this spell and all shall perish if they tried to rid of this! Only true love's kiss shall save her!"

A bright beam of light shot up from the woman's hand and she placed it gently onto Sophie's forehead. The woman screeched and a flurry of crows gathered around her, flying in a feathery swarm and when they finally dispersed, the woman was gone.

Sophie reappeared in Stefan's arms.

He shivered, stroking her golden locks of hair, hands shaking and trembling. Sophie finally opened her eyes and looked directly at him, her eyes glowing bright and green. The guards ushered the King back into the castle and the people outside. A few quickly picked up Vanessa, the arrow stuck inside her throat at a awkward angle. The Queen was still beautiful in death, her golden locks of hair spilling across her shoulders and her face perfectly pale. The rouge on her cheeks was still red. Apart from the arrow that sunk into her elegant neck, the Queen only looked like she was sleeping very lightly.

The advisors and servants rushed towards the King, who dropped into a chair, face pale and ghostly white, clutching Sophie tightly in his arms, afraid to let her go.

"What do we do, my King?"

One advisor asked, worry and concern written clearly across his face. Another servant wiped a hot cloth on the King's sweaty face and others drew the curtains. The room instantly darkened. He licked his lips, hands still shaking as he glanced down at Sophie's innocent face. The need to protect his daughter grew stronger and he looked grimly at his trusted advisors.

"Hide her."

He whispered, voice deathly soft. The advisor's eyes grew wide with meaning and he glanced down at the innocent child, who looked back at him with round green eyes, reflecting his face inside her irises.

"No, it's impossible.."

The advisor shook his head.

"It is..there is only one place that I know she can go too..."

The King whispered, pressing a hand against the advisor's shoulder, his words fast with urgency.

"No, my King, that place that you speak off, it's too far away..."

The advisor responded, but Stefan stood up and ignored him. He nodded his head at another advisor, who in turn quickly ran off. He returned with a thick scroll in his hands, and set it on top of the table, spilling waves of dust onto the glass. King Stefan walked towards the map and opened it, slowly, scanning each country and kingdom. He finally pointed to a piece of land, far away from the others, enclosed by a wall of sea.

The advisor peered down and read the engraved words.

"Camelot.."

The advisor said and glanced at the others in the room. They immediately nodded and walked out of the room.

"Take her there, soon."

King Stefan said, his eyes never leaving the words. Sophie cried softly in his arms, her little pudgy arms reaching for him. But King Stefan looked away, tears dripping into his beard.

"You'll never see her again.."

The advisor whispered.

"I know, but if thats the price to pay for her safety, then I'll do whatever it takes that Sophie shall be safe"

King Stefan looked down at his daughter in his arms, looked into her bright green eyes once more and placed a kiss against her forehead, forcing himself not to cry.

He lost the love of his life today and now his only hope, his only daughter.

The advisor took Sophie from King Stefan, and Sophie started to cry, wailing, reaching for her father. But King Stefan gave a quick nod at the advisor.

"Go now, and fast."

The ship set off at midnight.


	2. Princess Sophie

"Again!"

Professor Lukas's voice resounded throughout the massive room. A chorus of groans responded as students shifted back into a fighting position, curling their bruised fists again. It was the middle of the afternoon, and a refreshing cool breeze shifted through the open window. Agatha glanced carefully at her next opponent, who in turn hardened their fists and glowered at her back. It was one of those boys again. The tall mean one who thought they could beat up a little helpless girl and laugh about it. She smiled at him, feeling excitement and adrenaline tingle at the base of her spine. She'll show him helplessness. All students pair in pair, rows in rows and waited for the next command. A bead of sweat trailed down Agatha's brow and dripped onto the ground.

"Strike!"

Agatha narrowly ducked as the boy swung his fist at her face. Mistake. Why do these brainless thugs think it's about strength? She twisted her body sideways and jabbed a fist into his ribs, sending him out of his stance. He, in return, swung another fist at her. Agatha rolled her eyes. Fighting isn't only the pure form of strength, but the art of staying in balance and striking at the perfect moment. She easily dodged it and pushed hard against his chest, using the momentum to send him sprawling onto the floor. Perfect moment indeed. Before the boy was able to get back up, Agatha stamped her foot hard against his chest, allowing him to squirm for awhile. It reminded her of a insect.

Another fight won.

"Give up?"

Agatha smirked, crossing her arms over her chest. All around them, students were fighting in pairs while Professor Lukas surveyed the scene in front. She saw Hester furiously kick at another student's stomach. They went down. Agatha winced. Leave it to Hester to seriously injure someone. The boy groaned and rolled his eyes, glaring at her with hatred. They all gave her that look, wondering how a sickly skinny girl like her was able to win them in fights. Well, it really was about the techniques, not the strength. Physical strength didn't matter to her. It was the way you think.

"Give up..."

The boy mumbled and slammed his palm onto the hard wooden floor. Agatha released her foot off his chest and brushed away some strands of her black hair. She pressed her wet palms and patted away the sweat against her forehead and glanced at the wooden clock. It was almost half past noon, and they had been training for hours. Looking around her, all these students were tired. Her stomach gurgled again. And hungry.

"Well done students!"

Professor Lukas smiled from the front of the room, his voice booming loudly. Despite being in weathered condition, all the students stood up straighter and everyone faced the instructor with respect, no one daring to talk.

"Some are you are quite possibly the best in the whole entire school..."

Professor Lukas gave a few students a warm smile, inducing Agatha before looking back at the other students.

"While some, how should I put it, needs to toughen up and stop acting like fools..."

Some students next to Agatha grumbled and gave her stares full of jealousy and contempt. Agatha sighed inwardly, feeling the familiar feeling trickling in. No matter how much she tried to fit in, they would always hate her for who she was. She didn't fit in at all.

"Dismissed! Out you go!"

Professor Lukas replied and everyone let out a groan of relief before heading towards the doors exiting the gym. Many students bunched off into groups, complaining about the bruises on their fists and their hunger. Agatha fidgeted as she walked alone through the sea of people, keeping her head down, her short cropped hair shielding her face. Let her be invisible again. She preferred it anyways.

Although, she wasn't always alone.

"Hey Hester!"

Agatha called and hurried over to the trio or the coven as they called it. The coven was made out of three members, Hester, Anadil and Dot. Hester, who seemed to have a reputation of being feared could be easily recognizable by the red demon tattoo inked against her waxy pale skin. Her eyes were ghostly black and her hair was black with glints of fiery red dyed into it. Hester seemed to hate everyone, expect the one person she seemed to tolerate was Anadil, the silent albino. Unlike Hester's fierce personality, Anadil was rather silent and didn't talk much. Although that didn't mean she wasn't feared. On Anadil's shoulders perched three black rats with course fur that bared their teeth at anyone who passed a glance at them. Finally, there was...Dot. Dot was the opposite of the other two, with a personality brighter then the sun and a profound love of chocolate. She was shorter then gangly Hester or Anadil, rotund and had brown eyes, freckles and fluffy brown hair.

"Look, it's the teacher's pet..."

Hester drawled, her dark eyes glinting like sharks. Agatha rolled her eyes at the nickname Hester had given her. sweating under the summer sun. Dot gave her a wave while Anadil only nodded at her.

"Hester, you're pleasant like always..."

Agatha responded as they continued to make their way towards the clearing, where lunch was being served. Agatha's stomach growled impatiently and she wondered what they were serving today. As Agatha's thought's drifted towards food, someone tapped her arm sharply.

"Sader wants to see you four! Even though I don't know why since you're...you know...you.."

The four whirled around to face Beatrix, the most prettiest girl of the whole entire Academy. Although, Agatha could wish she could say the same about her personality. Beatrix glared at the four of them with utter hatred, as if she wished they could disappear. There was something about Beatrix that Agatha despised. The way that she acted, talked as if she was the best out of all of them.

"Now? But it's lunch time!"

Agatha grouched, feeling exhausted and in desperate need of fuel. Hester and Anadil glared daggers at Beatrix, who didn't seem to notice. Beatrix sighed with annoyance.

"Does it look like I care? No. But it's Sader, so you can't skip this!"

Beatrix snarked back and walked away, her golden blond coils of hair swishing behind her back. Agatha watched her walk away and looked back at the coven, who seemed to think the same thing.

"Whatever Sader has to say, it better be important.."

Agatha sighed, looking at the lush clearing with the green grass and breezy winds. She could see students in their training uniforms goggling ferociously in their food. With a another resigned sigh, Agatha looked back at the coven.

"Come on, let's go!"

* * *

Sader's officer was secluded and in the most far away tower in the Academy. He was a man of privacy and secrets and students don't see a lot of him.

"Ah, it's my favorite students! Come in please and close the door behind you!"

Sader grinned at them, his grey eyes shining underneath the light. He was dressed in a impeccable suit of shamrock green with a golden pin on the lapel. The four students dropped into chairs and looked at him. All around the room were beautiful impressionist paintings hanging on the cream walls. Smoky blurs of colors that depicted many different things. Agatha seemed to notice one in particular, one framed in a golden frame. The drawing was of a women, her eyes were dark and her skin was pale. The background was dark expect for a slash of green light. Agatha realized that the women was in the middle of speaking, almost as if she was chanting a spell.

Hester gave a impatient sigh and nudged Agatha in the ribs, hard. Agatha shot her a dirty glare before glancing back at Sader, who was watching them carefully.

"Um..Professor Sader, is there something you wanted to see us about?"

Agatha asked, watching the Professor smile at her.

"Do you four ever hear about Princess Sophie of Galvadon?"

"Who?"

Hester raised her eyebrow, in disbelief.

"Your quizzing us on princesses?"

Anadil softly asked Sader, who nodded in return. Hester grumbled something underneath her breath.

"Oh, was Sophie the one who tamed the Magibeasts? No, that was Adeline. Or was she the one who was famous for breathing fire?"

Dot asked to no one in particular. Anadil blinked.

"Hester, do you know?"

Agatha asked, wondering if one of the top ranked students ever memorized princesses.

"Does it look like I remember stupid princess names Agatha?"

Hester seethed angrily. Agatha rolled her eyes. The name Sophie left her feeling unsettled, as if she remembered it once, but she didn't know where it was from.

"Ahem."

The four whirled around to find Sader watching them curiously. The four stopped talking and glanced at Sader, who interlaced his fingers and squinted his eyes, as if reliving a distant memory. For once, Agatha could see traces of fear on his face.

"Princess Sophie was the one who was cursed."

The entire room gone silent. Agatha glanced one more time at the portrait, depicting the women chanting, her eyes wild and angry, her mouth contorted into a scream...The uneasy feeling lingered in the pit of her stomach.

"Oh! I remember now!"

Dot burst out and everyone looked at her. She giggled nervously and looked away.

"What does Sophie have to do anything with this?"

Agatha asked Sader, while Hester sighed again.

"Sophie was cursed with a particular spell, on her eighteenth birthday, she would prick her finger on a needle and fall into a eternal sleep. Her father, King Stefan of Galvadon sent Sophie into the far away kingdom of Camelot where she would be safe. After her eighteenth birthday, Sophie would come back and rule Galvadon, assuming she was able to survive the curse. However, the heir of Camelot, Prince Tedros of Camelot wanted to take extra measures to make sure Sophie was safe, so he contacted me and asked for the best students to go there and guard Sophie until her eighteenth birthday was over..."

Sader trailed off and looked at them expectedly.

"You want us to go to Camelot?! No way in hell am I going over there to be some body guard for a spoiled, stuck up princess!"

Hester rocketed up to her feet and crossed her arms, glaring at Sader.

"Hester, let me finish...If you are willingly to comply to this task, I will grant you a prize."

Hester snorted and shook her head.

"Sorry, Professor Sader. Not even money will even make me do this.."

Sader grinned at Hester, and crossed his arms.

"Not even the position of Class Captain...?"

Anadil gave a small chuckle and looked over at Hester, who stopped smiling and her eyes went wide.

"Wait, if I'm going to do this, you could make me Class Captain?"

"I am the Headmaster after all..."

Sader smiled at Hester before looking at the other three.

"The same thing goes for you, I can willing to grant you a prize if you would do this task for me. After all, you four are the best students in the school and do have a responsibility to serve our school and other countries..."

"Even Dot?"

Hester snarked, incredulous, looking at Dot in disbelief. Dot fired back a death glare and crossed her arms.

"Dot has potential and I chose her since she is relatively close to you three and I feel like she can grow to her true potential by learning from you three."

Hester rolled her eyes while Dot blushed pink and looked down at her shoes.

"Professor Sader, I really don't want anything through..."

Agatha said, curling her fists. After all, all she wanted was something Sader couldn't provide to her.

"I know, Agatha. But I do have something prepared for you even if you don't want it."

"When do we leave?"

Anadil asked, stroking a rat in her snow white palms. Sader chuckled.

"Tonight, so I believe you should start packing."

"WHAT?"

Hester gasped, shocking Anadil's rat, which scurried into her hair.

"How about classwork or other things?"

"I have everything arranged for a trip to Camelot tomorrow. Prince Tedros agreed to provide you food, money and a place to stay during your time there. So you don't need to pack a lot. Don't worry about the Academy, this may be much more important then academics. You four are protecting a real princess here.."

Agatha gulped, her throat dry. Hester's loud attitude dimmed a little bit and everyone seemed to sag from the nervousness. Dot fidgeted while Anadil chewed her lip.

"Ah, don't you worry. It isn't that bad"

Sader offered a comforting smile at the four students, who glanced at him wordlessly.

"Now, go pack and get a good night's sleep. I expect you will have a big day tomorrow!"

Agatha and the coven slowly stood up before walking out of the office, no one tried to make a sarcastic remark or a witty reply. For once, everyone was silent with fear and nervousness. The light was dimming as the four stood in silence in the dark empty hallway.

"Anyone hungry?"

Dot whispered into the silence.

"I could use some food"

Agatha gave her a crooked smile. Hester sighed again, without saying anything.

"Why not?"

Hester gave a small grin at Anadil, who shrugged while holding the rat in her palms.

"I can't believe we're going to meet the Camelot royals!"

Dot said with barely contained excitement as they all started going down the staircase.

"I bet their worse then Beatrix.."

Anadil chuckled dryly.

"Are you kidding? They're much worse then Beatrix.."

Hester retorted and glanced at Anadil.

Agatha smiled silently to herself, the weight taken off her shoulders for once. For once she finally felt like herself, with the coven, and that her life could be normal again.

Until tomorrow.

* * *

 **Hello hello guys!**

 **Yep, this is another story...sorry.**

 **Actually, I had this dream about Sleeping Beauty and it really made a good fan fiction. So, I developed it into a story and it turned out pretty well. So I decided to publish it.**

 **Don't worry, I'm still going to work on Girl of Shadows, but this story is just..so much better, in my point of view. I like the premise more as it is much more interesting.**

 **Well, I hope you like this idea!**

 **Like, follow, review!**

 **-princessthornofcassia**

 **P.S Feel free to talk to me about any of the stories and if you have some ideas, I'm actually looking for ideas right now! Well, thats it! :D**


	3. Beginning of the Journey

The dawn sky was weak and watery blue.

Bleary with sleepiness, Agatha squinted through the window, looking at the weak rays of sun slicing through the clouds.

A loud thud came from the door.

"Hurry up and let us in!"

Hester's voice was muffled from the other side. Agatha rolled her eyes and slowly plodded over before limply turning the lock. Her head rain and she could feel a slight headache coming.

Hester, Anadil and Dot burst in her room, all hauling their own trunks.

"Rise and shine, teacher's pet! We're going to Camelot!"

Agatha gave Hester a weak smile, despite being called the nickname she hated.

"Aren't you nervous? I'm nervous! I cannot believe we're going to meet Prince Tedros, the Prince Tedros!"

Dot chirped, happy and excited as ever. Anadil dropped down to her knees and from behind the shadows of her cloak, three rats dropped onto the ground.

"What's so good about him?"

Agatha asked as she walked over to her closet and pulled out a thick woolen cloak.

"Well, apparently he's very handsome and wealthy! Do you think we could talk to him?"

Dot smiled dreamily before plopping down on Agatha's bed. It creaked underneath her weight.

"He doesn't sound so special to me..just some pompous prince.."

Agatha rolled her eyes before tucking her short cropped hair into the hood.

She glanced briefly in the mirror while the coven's chatters blurred into silence. She closed her eyes, feeling nervousness stir slowly in her stomach.

 _Breathe..Agatha...breathe..._

Agatha opened her eyes, squelching any traces of fear left. Her whole entire life...somehow she felt like it added up to this moment. It wasn't like she was born out of some wealthy family. In fact, Sader found her abandoned, lying in the dirt mud, in a basket. From the moment Sader started to let her attend the Academy, Agatha strived to do as well as she possibly could, trying to earn a future for herself after school.

Because she had no one else to rely on.

"Agatha?"

Dot's voice shattered the whirling storm of thoughts. Agatha jumped and whirled around to see Dot looking at her with worry. Hester and Anadil stopped talking at glanced briefly at Agatha.

"I'm..fine.."

Agatha mustered up a thin smile and tied the strings of her cloak tighter, shivering slightly.

"You know...we're only going to be gone for a month."

Dot gave her a reassuring smile. For a split moment, Agatha's heart melted. It melted because she knew that she wasn't completely alone. That even with blindly clawing around in the darkness, Agatha had her friends. Despite all their flaws, there was a bond of truth between all four of them.

She blinked rapidly and swallowed the bump in her throat. Hester groaned and rolled her eyes.

"Ugh, we're going to be late. Can we stop acting like wimps and go to Camelot to kick somebody's ass?"

The four of them laughed and even Hester surrendered a grin. Agatha quickly picked up her trunk and straightened her back, following the coven out.

* * *

In the shadows of mists, four cloaked figures walked along the winding road. The streets were silent and airy with the feel of abandon. Windows were locked shut and streams of watery sunlight shown on the tiled grounds. As Agatha struggled with the weight of her trunk, she could smell the wisps of sea salt in the air. Through curtains of buildings, Agatha could make out the port where ships were anchored and busy with trade. The clouds were puffy and full while the sky was cooperative with them today and didn't show a hint of disturbance.

After walking along the winding paths, Agatha and the three found themselves along the shipping port. Although it was quite early, a air of activity and excitement hung along as people haggled over prices while large men carried wooden crates of goods, ready to be transported. The sails of the boats fluttered slightly and above it was the cries of seagulls.

"Professor Sader!"

Agatha called throughout the chaos. Professor Sader was chatting with some of the sailors in front of a large ship. On the white sails was the insignia of Camelot, the lion with the two swords.

"That's our ship?"

Agatha breathed in awe. It was one of the biggest ones.

"Agatha, I see you four haven't changed your mind!"

Professor Sader stopped talking and ushered them over.

"Yet.."

Anadil mumbled and Hester cackled silently. The four of them gathered around Sader who was accompanied with a well built man dressed in the military uniform. A sharp dark blue blazer with golden tassels and white breeches. On the man's chest was the golden pin of Camelot's insignia.

"Ah..students let we introduce Chaddick of Foxwood, the captain of Camelot's army. He has been tasked with transporting you safely to Camelot."

The man turned towards them and grinned. To her surprise, Agatha realized that the man was merely around her age, gifted with extraordinary features. He had dark brown blonde hair, cropped neatly. His grey eyes almost looked like it was sparkling and his skin was flawlessly tan.

"Ladies, welcome aboard the Athena. I'll be safely taking you to Camelot for your task there."

Chaddick answered in a deep voice and gestured for a few men to take their baggage. A ramp slowly ordered and Chaddick motioned the four to step onto the boat.

Sader smiled at the four of them.

"I have never been the proudest of all four of you...and surely I know all of you will amount to your true potential.."

He glanced at all of them, before looking at Agatha last.

"And I know you will truly discover who you are..."

Agatha furrowed her brows. What did Sader mean? Before she could question him any further, Chaddick ushered the four onto the boat. Thoughts were buzzing in Agatha's head as she climbed slowly on the deck. Something inside her was ringing with alarm, as if she knew something big was about to happen.

"Good bye Professor!"

Agatha called, waving from the deck. The four students waved to their cherished Headmaster while the anchor was slowly being lifted. Sader gave them a big grin as he waved back from the dock, bright against the grey pavement in his shamrock green attire.

 _Discover who you are?_

Agatha frowned, her arm hanging in mid air. She didn't have a identity or any paths to her original family. For all she knew, her parents died in a mill accident and she was left abandoned.

The boat started to move away from the dock and Sader never left as he got smaller and smaller. The whole entire town soon became a strip on the horizon, getting thinner and thinner. Breathing steadily, Agatha looked at the coven who were chatting excitedly about finally leaving the Academy and going off into a adventure.

"I bet their weapon stock is much bigger then the schools!"

Hester grinned.

"Do you think we can use them?"

Anadil replied back, matching her best friend's grin. A rat stood on Anadil's pale shoulder, sniffing the salty sea air. As Agatha smiled, relaxing a little and felt the stress slowly unwind. The waves slapped against the ship and the sea was a deep aquamarine blue.

"So, you must be Agatha right? I presume..the normal one?"

Chaddick sidled up next to her. Agatha cocked a eyebrow, glancing at Hester's terrifying tattoo, Anadil's rats and Dot, who was eating a bit of chocolate.

"I guess so..."

She shrugged and played with a string on her cloak. Chaddick gave her a amused smile, looking at the coven.

"Who's the girl with the demon tattoo?"

"That's Hester, the girl who could easily turn your insides out. Anadil is the albino with the three rats and Dot likes chocolate a lot."

Chaddick laughed before facing her again.

"Are you nervous to go to Camelot?"

"Excited too, I never been to another country...how long is it going to take to get there?"

"Two weeks at the most, if the weather's nice. Otherwise, maybe a month."

"A month?"

Agatha gasped, looking at Chaddick. He laughed and fiddled with a brass button.

"Believe me, you haven't seen the worst. I've been stuck at sea for maybe three months before.."

"Really? Don't you ever get sick of it?"

"No, never..."

"Why?"

Chaddick stopped laughing, he turned away from Agatha and looked towards the rolling waves of the sea. Something softened in his eyes and he grinned to himself.

"Because in the end, coming back to Camelot is worth it. It's a amazing place.."

"Really? Camelot's that good of a place?"

Chaddick glanced at Agatha before looking back at the sea.

"Wait till you actually go there.."

Chaddick gave Agatha a smile. His clear grey eyes held a glimmer of amusement and mystery.

"I hope it will surpass my expectations!"

Agatha replied back, carefully watching the captain walk away from the dock, arms folded behind his back and grinning a cocksure smile.

She looked back towards the rolling and churning waves of blue sea, shards of the sun glinting on the water. Agatha inhaled the sharp salty air and breathed out slowly.

She was going to Camelot.


	4. Complications

The clang of steel against steel woke Agatha up.

She slowly sat upright, feeling the cold morning air on her bare shoulders. Agatha peered down from her bunk to find three empty beds, all neatly made with the pillows put in their correct positions. She groaned and pushed the quilt off her before starting to climb down her bunk. Someone's voice rang sharply above and Agatha quickly got dressed, finding a pair of grey cotton pants and a comfortable cotton shirt. She took a glance at the mirror and ran a hand over her hair, which was tangled from a night of tossing and turning. She had never been on sea before, so it was hard to fall asleep. The constant lurches and crashes that the ship made worried her. With another yawn, Agatha limply grabbed the her cloak from the small writing desk in the room and quickly went upstairs.

Climbing onto the deck, Agatha saw Hester and Chaddick engaged in a spirited sword fight. Around them were the fellow crew members who were cheering for their captain to win. She saw the proud expression on Anadil's face and already knew that Hester's prowess at sword fight would not be outmatched. Agatha was right. Before Chaddick could attack, Hester swiftly swung her legs out and broke Chaddick's stance, which sent him off balance and sprawling onto the wooden floors of the deck. He was about to get up before spotting the sharp point of the sword directed at his throat. He looked up to see Hester smiling victoriously, barely sweating. Another chorus of cheers and groans erupted.

Hester dropped the sword and offered a hand. Chaddick took it with a sullen expression, using one hand to wipe off the sweat on his face.

"How...where did you learn how to fight like that?"

Chaddick asked, still panting and moping his face. Hester shrugged, crossing her lean muscular arms together.

"Hours and hours of training with Professor Lukas finally paid off"

Chaddick raised his eyebrows and finally was able to talk in a even voice.

"Princess Sophie is in good hands, I guess."

Chaddick said to the four of them, picking up the fallen hat he had. He gave all of them another smile before walking off, towards his fellow crew members who were still excited and buzzing about the four students and their skills.

Hester looked over at Agatha, before grinning again.

"Is the teacher's pet jealous? Because someone is finally better then her?"

Anadil and Dot laughed while Agatha merely scoffed.

"Jealous? We'll see about that"

Agatha returned simply before going over and picking up one of the fallen swords. She held it in her hands, testing out the balance and the weight of it. The silver gleamed in the sun. Agatha looked over at the coven and raised a eyebrow.

"Now any one of you up for another fight?"

* * *

Days melded into weeks. During the day, Agatha and the coven would often spend their time helping out with the crew members, many who were all the same age as her, or going to the deck to practice their skills and fight each other. Hester and Anadil particularly liked the huge stock of weapons that the ship had, full of new weapons that were made with today's modern technology. The four of them would then test out each weapon. Of course, some of the weapons were tricky to maneuver and someone would always almost end up dead (Agatha almost ended up with a bullet in her leg because Dot accidentally pressed the trigger). But after that, the four would burst into peals of laughter, gushing about how crazy and clumsy they all were. Chaddick would give them odd looks from the steering wheel, and some of the crew members gave they wary glances.

However during the night, all of members of the ship would come up onto the deck, each with their own bowls of food and sit in front of the lanterns in the center, talking and chatting with one another. It was fun, after a day of strenuous work, everyone would easily settle down and joke or chat. Sometimes Agatha would look upon the dark sky and see the stars and try to recognize some of the constellations that she had learned. She talked to some of the other crew members and found out amazing backstories from all of them and some of those stories were very much like Agatha's. Starting from having nothing at all to having something of their own.

* * *

One night, like the others before, all the crew members were on the decks, shoving potatoes and meat into their mouths, hungry from another day of work. Agatha had sat next to the coven, feeling a tad sick of the normal potatoes from her meal. She looked over at the lanterns, and the bright flames inside them, licking the glass. Everyone was joking around and chatting happily, much like anymore night.

Chaddick cleared his throat and everyone turned towards him. Agatha could see that through his taunt facial expression, something was wrong. The joyous mood died down. The air was eerily silent, expect for the constant slaps of the waves against the hull of the boat. Agatha gave Dot a nervous look before turning her attention back onto Chaddick. He swallowed and his Adam's apple lurched.

"As you know, we are transporting four students from the Academy to Camelot. And because of further complications, our route to Camelot requires us to travel through some...Winter Clan occupied waters. Tomorrow we have to travel through a narrow strip of water, deep into Winter Clan territory. Because of the weather, there is no other route around it..."

Chaddick stopped talking and watched the everyone's face around him grow apprehensive with worry. Agatha felt sudden panic rip through her. After all these nights and days of utter bliss, the familiar panic she once felt now felt like a stranger. Winter Clan territory? She heard rumors about the force that could take down kingdoms in days. Many had fallen prey to the Winter Clans, like Galvadon, Avalon and more. Because Camelot was further away from the central land, it was safe. For now. Agatha had heard about the Winter Clans themselves. They were half demons and half humans, many say, with dangerous abilities and powers. Villages near the Academy would speak about the abilities that these Winter Clans possessed. Some Winter Clans could spit out fire while others could summon a angry storm of crows and such. Agatha shuddered, now feeling the panic rising inside her. They had guns and swords, but what match could that be against a being that could manipulate a element itself?

Chaddick cleared his throat again and everyone stopped nervously taking. He unfurled a map, and motioned everyone to gather around it.

"This narrow strip of land that we must take is called the Slit Throat.."

He gestured towards the thin piece of water on the map. Among the crowd, Agatha peered closely at it. Between two chunks of land was the thin body of water, Slit Throat. Much fitting to the name indeed. Chaddick furrowed his brows, studying the map before looking up to see his worried crew numbers.

"Do not panic, everyone. Slit Throat is a abandoned part of the Winter Clan territory, but we still must be wary. Tomorrow, I want everyone on the deck at dawn. We need to be prepared, for anything to happen."

Suddenly, the boat lurched and everyone immediately steadied themselves. Chaddick grimly rolled up the map before tucking it beneath his navy military coat. He met the worried eyes of everyone and sighed.

"I know that it may seem dangerous, but we will have to try our best. I couldn't have asked for a more well trained crew, so we have nothing to worry about..."

Even with his mouth saying the words, Agatha could see the unease inside Chaddick's eyes. She felt someone put a light hand on her shoulder and looked to see Dot, brown eyes wide with fear stare motionlessly at her. Agatha gave a uneasy smile and squeezed Dot's hand before looking back at Chaddick.

"Everyone, go back to your rooms and rest. You will need it for tomorrow"

Chaddick said and all the crew members gathered up their bowls and lanterns, defeated. Among the crowd, Agatha's eyes found Hesters and the four of them rejoined. Although Hester was one of the bravest people Agatha had ever meet, there was a dash of fear in her eyes. It only unsettled Agatha further. She glanced at Anadil, who always held a face of no emotion, but there was a crack in her mask. A tiny furrow in her thin brows, a unsettled look in her eyes.

The four of them trudged with defeat into their room and sank into their bunks. There was a long silence before Dot finally spoke up.

"Hester? Are you alright? You haven't talked in a few minutes or made any sarcastic remarks at all. It's very unlike you.."

Hester scoffed from her bunk above.

"Of course I'm alright, you twit. It's no big deal. Remember, Chaddick said it was abandoned, so it's probably nothing..."

Silence continued before Agatha finally said something.

"I think we're going to be alright. After all, who did we train with?"

"Professor Lukas.."

Anadil whispered back, one hand stroking her rats.

"And if we spent hours punching metal walls, I think we can handle a few Winters.."

Hester grumbled back. Agatha felt a little bit relieved. Her training had prepared her well for these kinds of encounters.

Dot laughed a little before leaning over the the writing desk and blowing off the lantern. The room submerged into pitch black. All Agatha heard was the rolling waves of the sea.

"Good night.."

She whispered into the darkness.

"Good night.."

The coven whispered back.

Agatha sighed and prepared herself for another night of tossing and turning.

 **Ahh, and the plot starts to get exciting. I hope everyone is enjoying Red Roses and Curses. Follow, review and favorite. See everyone next time-princessthornofcassia**

 **P.S I hope to incorporate other ships into the story because I ship something other then Tagatha...(hah, I hope) so I wanted to incorporate Hesterdil into the story if you guys haven't noticed already.**


	5. Slit Throat Pt1

It's strange to wake up with a chill in the air and a fear of being killed that morning.

The four girls dressed into their usual attire, wordlessly, without anyone trying to start a conversation. The sun's rays were weak during dawn and through the small round window Agatha could see the thick blanket of fog that wrapped their ship. She turned around and grabbed her cloak, before fastening the strands tightly. Next to her, Anadil had slid four daggers into her belt, and tucking two small pistols in the shadows of her cloak. Her rats whimpered as if sensing the oncoming danger. Hester was lacing up her boats and slung on her back was the sharp points of a crossbow. Even Dot, who usually didn't have a preferable weapon, since she lacked the interest nor the skill of fighting and combat, had chosen a flat sword. Agatha had already placed two small knives at both her left and right hip. She then proceeded to have a weapon that was long distance, a small pistol.

Feeling the weight of the gun and the knives on herself reassured Agatha. Whatever happened next would be less terrible with some weapons that could take down a man.

Then without another word, the four all cloaked up and laced with weapons walked out of their room. They all appeared on deck to see the crew members and Chaddick gathered in the center. Agatha warily glanced up to see the sky was a sickly shade of grey. The fog was so thick that she could barely see the tops of the sails, they had disappeared halfway.

"Everyone, we have arrived at Slit Throat..."

Chaddick said in a monotone voice. He was wearing the navy blue military uniform, and a dark red cloak over it. On everyone's faces, Agatha could see waning courage and growing fear. The boat rocked unsteadily beneath their feet. She glanced at their surroundings and saw grey sharp rocks that pocked through the fog, reminding her of claws or fingernails.

"Now I want everyone to be positioned either at the front, the back or around the sides of the boat. Hester, Tarquin, Anadil at the head. Agatha, Nicholas and Dot at the back. Bastian, Tristan and Oliver at the left..."

All the crew members quickly scurried to their positions as Chaddick continued to list off names. Everyone had their weapons drawn and ready, eyes alert. Crouched next to Dot, Agatha looked over the boat and at the murky waters beneath. She gulped and returned her attention back. Chaddick walked over the front of the deck, joining Hester and Anadil. Within moments, a deep and slow silence draped over the boat. Agatha listened intently to any sounds, her hand clutching the pistol tightly. Next to her, Dot was breathing lightly, holding onto her sword like it was a lifeboat. Agatha withdrew one hand and put it on Dot's shoulder. She gave Dot a meaningful glance and slowly nodded her head. Dot exhaled, and nodded back.

The boat continued to slowly move across the restless waters, the floorboards of the boat creaked. Chaddick's gaze searched the horizon worryingly, clenching and unclenching his jaw. Hester gaze was stony and cold and she constantly readjusted her position, before Anadil took Hester's hand and calmed her down. The albino gazed at Hester determinedly and Hester closed her eyes before opening them again. A ominous birdcall suddenly sounded. It echoed and echoed until it finally melded into silence. Nicholas groaned and gave a impatient glare over at Chaddick.

"Captain, what are you worried about? There is nothing here! We needn't have to hide from anything!"

His yell resounded from the entire ship. Everyone immediately turned to face him, wondering if he was right. Chaddick whirled around, teeth gritted.

"Shut it, Nicholas and return to your position!"

"But there is nothing to worry about! Why are we hiding like wusses? If I were Captain, I would steer this boat out of this wretched place and continue-"

But before he could even finish that sentence, something suddenly grabbed hold of his wrist and flung him into the water.

"Nicholas!"

Agatha cried and rushed over to where he had just been standing. She gripped the railing and looked over the boat trying to search for him. But nothing happened. A new wave of fear washed over her and clamped her heart with a cold hand.

"Everyone, stay away from the sides!"

Chaddick yelled, his eyes widening in fear. All the crew members obeyed, running towards the center of the deck, holding their weapons with shaking hands. Dot was trembling, scanning the decks around them in a frenzy. The only sound made was the quickened breathing of everyone. Agatha held her pistol with both hands, one thumb rested on the trigger. She searched the ominous grey fog, waiting for a movement or a sound.

She listened closely, remembering the words that she always said to herself. _Strike at a perfect moment._

Something had just attacked them. Something had just fired a warning shot at all of them. Now that something would wait for the right moment to launch another attack.

 _It's coming._

"Duck!"

Agatha barely finished that word before a huge tidal wave crashed onto the ship, shoving the boat sideways. Everyone lost their balance from the force and were flung onto the floor and slid to the sides of the ship. Spitting water, Agatha grabbed the ceiling with one arm and immediately pointed her pistol at the attackers. She couldn't believe what she was seeing.

Figures, _figures_ surfaced from the water, turing liquid into flesh and bone. Their skin was unnaturally blue and even though the mist, Agatha could make out the their narrowed eyes and curled mouths. They wore aquamarine blue garb, the fabric was usually shiny and held a gleam and lightness that normal fabrics could never hold. The Winter's hair was extraordinarily orange. Each one of Winters had long, course orange red hair that tumbled over their shoulders. Their teeth were dagger like and sharp and their eyes shone with bloodlust.

Agatha lost her breath. All around her, crew members quickly regained their footing and blanched at the sight. _Winter Clans._

Agatha narrowed her eyes and slowly raised her pistol. All she knew was that these beings were dangerous and would rip their guts apart if they had the chance.

She leaped forward and pressed the trigger.

The explosion seemed to send all the crew members back to their senses and everyone drew their weapons. The bullet hit the Winter in the center and it let out a terrifying shriek before hitting the wooden floors of the deck, convulsing before it finally became still. The Winter next to it slowly looked up and met Agatha's stare.

It opened it's mouth and let out a thundering scream, face contorted in anger. Agatha didn't need to know their language to know what that meant.

 _Attack._

"Attack!"

Chaddick growled and all the crew members unleashed a war cry before storming towards the Winters, who in return let out a chorus of piercing screams and raised their arms. The water around them started to ripple before it rose up in thick tendrils, vibrating with energy. Agatha widened her eyes, staring at the water with a fresh wave of fear. That was their weapon. Before she could react, the two sides plunged into chaos.

Screams and shouts came from both sides. Agatha saw Winters using the tendrils of water to strangle the crew members, lifting them up high in the air, before a bullet hole appeared in their heads. Agatha saw one of the crew members, Oliver, run towards a Winer, sword drawn and ready to attack. Mistake. The Winter slammed their arm down and the water wrapped around his entire head, drowning and choking him at the same time. Oliver could only gurgle and swing around his sword blindly. Agatha gritted her teeth and ran forward, taking one of the knives she had in her belt before throwing it at the Winter's abdomen. It let out a wounded shriek and dropped the water. Oliver collapsed onto the deck, head dripping with water and gagging. Agatha raced over and grappled him by the armpits before dragging him away from the battle. He was shuddering and coughing before finally managing to say something.

"Behind you"

Agatha whirled around too late. The tendril of water snaked around her neck and lifted her high above. Panic turned into adrenaline. Between gasps of air, Agatha fumbled around for her pistol, only to see it on the deck floors below. The Winter shrieked with joy and tightened it's fists. The water tightened around her neck. Kicking around wildly, Agatha tried to call for help, breaths ragged and short. She clawed at the water, only to find out her fingers slip through it. With her vision darkening, Agatha looked into the eyes of the Winter. She looked at the eyes of her murderer.

The Winter was grinning with a manic joy in it's eyes. It's smile light up as Agatha started to lose consciousness. The world was darkening and Agatha's breaths slowly dwindled. This was it. This was her final battle. She glared at the Winter, determined not to give up. As it's face blurred in Agatha's vision, the light in it's eyes dimmed and the smile instantly disappeared. The Winter collapsed onto it's back, Dot's flat sword rammed through it.

Agatha fell onto the wooden decks hard. Panting and bleary from the pain, Dot ran forward and helped her up. Agatha continued to gulp in air, the numbness of her fingers slowly dissipating. She finally glanced up at Dot.

"Thank you..so much...for saving me.."

Agatha whispered, still paunchy from the lack of air. Dot smiled and gave Agatha her pistol back. Then without another word, she disappeared into the battle. Agatha inhaled once again, loaded her gun and stormed in the chaos, determined to save her friends.

 **Interesting. Get ready for Part 2!**

 **Thank you so much for reading Red Roses and Curses, hope you enjoyed!**

 **Remember to like, review and follow!**


	6. Slit Throat Pt2

Through the shouts and the shrieks, through the bodies of both men and Winter alike, Agatha had a plan.

It was risky, but she knew that they were losing the battle. Little by little, the Winters came to their senses and summoned extraordinary tidal waves to flush out the approaching forces. Soon, a huge wall of water surrounded the Winters all together, so no bullets or arrows could penetrate it. Then all the Winters had to do was grab victims using ropes of water and strangle them. Although it sickened Agatha, there was a part of her in awe of how powerful these Winters were.

"Hester!"

Agatha yelled in the midst of chaos. The leader of the coven turned around, panting and breathing heavily. Her skin was marred and flecked with blood and her face held a expression of pure anger. Her dark brows were narrowed over her dark eyes, which glinted with resilience. For a moment, Agatha was afraid of her. Because glancing into her eyes, Agatha could see the true mark of a warrior in there. The demon tattoo on her neck only amplified that.

"What is it? Can you see I'm busy?"

Agatha glanced down at her blood flecked dagger and the crossbow before looking back up at Hester.

"Look, I have a plan that can help us turn the tide of this battle. But I need your help."

Hester looked at Agatha with doubt, raising one eyebrow. Agatha whispered her plan in Hester ears. A slow but devious smile spread across Hester's pale face. The fire in her dark eyes seemed to burn brighter. And Agatha smiled back, for she knew it would definitely work.

"Not such a bad idea, teacher's pet"

Hester replied, crossing her arms together.

There in the chaos of a violent battle, two girls disappeared.

They rushed down towards the storage room, where the arrays of weapons were neatly hung in rows. Agatha ran over towards the corner of the dark room, heart beating with exhilaration. She picked up small jar and in the dim light, she was able to read the words _"Oil"._

"Take as much jars as you can!"

Agatha called to Hester before grabbing many jars into her arms and carrying it upstairs. Then after they had enough, Hester and Agatha dumped all of the contents into a iron cauldron from the kitchen. Straining underneath the weight, they hauled it towards the deck where the battle raged on.

"This plan better work"

Hester whispered, surveying the fight. She watched as a coil of water lashed violently against someone, who in turn screamed and struggled to flee. She looked away as the Winter curled his fist together. Without another moment to lose, Hester, holding the cauldron in her chest climbed up the ladder onto the crows nest that overlooked the battle. From a different view, Hester narrowed her eyes as she saw the Winters screaming mercilessly and lassoing victims one after another. Her finger itched on the crossbow and Hester did everything she come to hold herself back from shooting one of them. She had to wait for Agatha's order.

* * *

"Chaddick!"

Agatha yelled into the crowd, dodging fallen bodies and people. She ran ahead to see Chaddick grab onto one of his crew members arms, trying to save him from being dragged away. But he didn't have the strength, and watched helplessly as his fellow crew mate was dragged away. There was a unusual fury in his eyes as Chaddick nocked his pistol at the Winter, determined to kill them all. But then he felt someone else behind him and turned around to see Agatha.

"Surrender."

"What?"

Chaddick questioned, not believing what he heard. He gave Agatha a angry look and turned away.

"Im not losing to these wretched demons from hell. I'm going to kill every single one of them, like all my mates that they killed.."

"Believe me, I want to win this battle. But I have a plan and you have to surrender"

Agatha pressed again, before taking him aside and whispering the plan to him. Chaddick drew back, his eyebrows drawn together quizzically, as if unsure about it.

"I know it will work. It has too. And you have to surrender in order to do so"

Chaddick turned away again, glaring at nothing in particular. He looked at the battle and finally sighed in defeat.

"Fine, I'll surrender..."

Without another word, Chaddick stormed into the battle, shoving aside people and dodging moaning bodies on the floor. Then he was face to face with the Winters. From behind the water wall, their faces looked misshapen and grotesque. He glared at them, focusing his anger on what would happen next. Finally, with his head down, Chaddick slowly raised both hands up, unable to look at his fellow crew members.

The battle stopped.

Everyone gasped as they saw their brave and beloved Captain admit to defeat, right in front of them. The water wall lowered and the Winters stepped out, grinning like sharks. After strenuous fighting, all the crew members slowly dropped down their weapons and bowed their heads, unable to look at their Captain. The Winter laughed before kneeling down to look into the Captains eyes.

"How do you feel about losing?"

The Winter said in a eerily perfect voice. Chaddick raised his eyebrows but didn't look up or respond. Everyone stood frozen like statues, with wide eyes and defeated hearts.

"I said, how do you feel about losing to us? You wretched human!"

The Winter mocked, grinning with sharp teeth. Chaddick finally stared at him squared in the eye and suddenly grinned back.

"Oh, we haven't lost just yet."

The Winter's eyes widened and before he could react, a huge wave of oil rained down on him. The Winter gaped up in shock to see Hester holding a empty cauldron. The other Winters immediately shrieked in surprise and Chaddick dove away just as Agatha came running out of the crowd holding lanterns flickering with light.

She threw it at their feet.

When oil meets fire, it ignites.

The Winters howled in agony as the fire erupted around them. Agatha winced at the sounds and immediately started to shot the Winters. Following her example, remaining crew members threw whatever they had that would make the fire grow. Hester nocked her crossbow and shot arrows down at the Winters, who continued to shriek as they skin continued to burn. Finally, the remaining Winters leapt off the ship and plunged into the waters below.

Everyone rushed towards the railings and peered down. The grey waves of the sea slapped against the ship.

The shouts of victory resounded across the entire ship.

"That was bloody brilliant! I've never seen anything like that!"

Chaddick whooped, giving Agatha a huge grin. Everyone swarmed around her, buzzing with excitement and giving her praises. Agatha weakly smiled back, not used to the sudden attention.

"We are Sader's best, so try not to be surprised"

Hester smiled as she appeared behind Agatha and put one arm on her shoulder.

"Now I know why your called 'teacher's pet'"

Anadil whispered softly, gazing at Agatha in awe.

"I tell you what, Camelot's royalty will sure be in a surprise"

Chaddick said, giving all four of them a look of respect. He then peered at the disappearing land behind them and onto the broad ocean horizon. They were out in the middle of the ocean again. Agatha could see the awakening sun shine splendidly onto the deck floors, making the polished wooden planks shine.

She turned back to the coven, feeling the twisting excitement inside her.

"Camelot's coming"

 **Get ready! They arrive in Camelot in the next chapter! I'm so excited (AHHHH!)**

 **Thank you for reading Red Roses and Curses, make sure to like, follow and review!**


	7. The Arrival

There was no one on the deck as Agatha crept up the stairs, one hand on the wooden handle while she held a flickering lantern in the other hand.

It was only her and the expanse of the midnight sky, which shown above her, remind Agatha of deep rich silk. Sitting down in the center of the deck, Agatha put the lantern next to her and looked up at the sky, letting herself walk away with the bundle of thoughts inside her mind. In a days time, they would arrive in Camelot.

Camelot.

Suddenly, it felt all too real. Too sudden.

And for once in her life, Agatha felt scared. She closed her eyes, trying to ease the worry that wound tightly inside her. She listened to the melodic lull of the waves that hit the ship, the sound of water against wood.

"How long have you been here?"

Someone asked behind her. Agatha turned around, startled only to see the silhouette of Hester, Anadil and Dot in the night sky. She laughed dryly.

"I guess you caught me"

Agatha whispered as Dot took a seat next to her. Hester and Anadil followed and the four of them tilted their heads to gaze up into the starry blackness and the stars.

"I can see the Orion"

Anadil answered, lifting one pale arm in the air and pointing at the sky above. Hester laughed and nestled into her friends side, leaning her head against Anadil's shoulder. There was a peaceful silence among the four girls, the four of then all gazing upon the constellations of the night, awed by its beauty and content to be next to each other. And even Hester, with her usual coat of armor behind her emotions, was just as silent as the other three.

"So...I guess this is it"

Dot whispered, eyes still lost in the stars, her brown eyes glazed over with a emotionless expression.

"Oh, cheer up you baby. Stop acting so goddamn emotional, we just ended a boat ride thats all"

Hester scoffed, shaking away the sudden vulnerability she had just shown. Agatha carefully peered over at Hester and noticed the way she was holding herself rigid, to cover up the unsteadiness inside too.

"Well, maybe, Hester, because your not a human being, you wouldn't understand it"

Dot replied, before drawing in a contented sigh. Anadil chuckled slightly, looking over at Hester, her red eyes beautiful with the reflection of the stars behind them.

"You're human enough for me"

Hester finally gave a long smile, her dark eyes shining. She put one hand on Anadil's pale shoulder.

"I guess thats all I need to be"

And there it was, four girls looking up in the same sky. All lost in their own dreams and hopes and desires. For a moment, everything was perfect.

* * *

"I would like to introduce the four of you to Camelot!"

Chaddick's voice was barely heard through the loudness of the trading port below. Agatha lost her breath at the wide expanse of the land before them. The trading port was enormous, full of people from all different places, with huge stacks of goods being transported towards the towns. From beyond the trading port, Agatha could see the tiny houses that dotted the green mountains. Camelot did not look real, for Agatha. It looked like a picture, something she would see in Sader's office. For a moment, Agatha just stared at the deep complexity of the land before her, unsure if it was real. All four stood still, taking in the sight before them.

Chaddick laughed, amused by the four's stunned silence.

"What did I tell you? It's good to be back"

With the biggest grin Agatha had ever seen on his face, the captain strolled down the lowered plank and into the chaotic trading port. Unsure but excited, the four students followed carrying their trunks with them. Dodging large crates and slipping through massive crowds, the four wore a face of pure wonder, gazing at Camelot's blue sky while trying to hurry after Chaddick through the thick crowds. After reaching the edge of the port, there was a ornately carved carriage waiting for them. The lion with the two swords insignia was carved with gold on the front and the coachmen was wearing one on his uniform too. He walked over and took the shocked students's trunks and started to stack them on the back of the carriage.

"No way, is this all for us?"

Agatha questioned, taking in the lush velvet seats on the inside and the beautiful handiwork of the exterior. Chaddick nodded and Dot gave a squeal of barely contained joy.

"Ive never ridden a carriage before!"

Dot said happily and quickly stepped in, sinking comfortably into the velvet. She glanced at Agatha, Hester and Anadil who glanced at her warily. She patted the seat next to her.

"Come on! The seats are ridiculously expensive and extremely comfortable!"

Hester sighed and climbed in, followed by Anadil and Agatha before Chaddick climbed to join them and closed the door shut.

"To Camelot's castle"

He called out to the coachmen, who gave a terse nod and tutted for the horses to move. They gave a whinney and started to trot.

"So, what do you think?"

Chaddick asked them, with a wide grin. The captain's sudden playful personality amused Agatha, reminded her of a little boy who just came back to his favorite place in the whole entire world. Hester raised a eyebrow at Chaddick.

"Why are you suddenly acting like a giddy six year old girl?"

Hester questioned, smirking at him. Chaddick's smile dropped and he quickly looked outside the window.

"I'm just happy to be back, after all, Camelot's incredibly beautiful"

"It's impossible for anyone to get that happy over a place..."

Anadil answered in a low voice, glancing over at Hester and Dot. Three identical smiles appeared on their faces. Chaddick watched them with a air of confusion, his eyes darting between the three.

"So spill it, who's the girl?"

Dot burst out, raising both of her eyebrows. Chaddick opened his mouth to reply, but stopped.

"There is no girl!"

He muttered, flustered with red cheeks.

"Of course there is a girl! I can spot a lovey dovey fool when I see one!"

Hester barked back, watching the captain's cheeks turn another shade of red, if it was possible. He averted eye contact and crossed his arms together, mumbling something. The coachmen outside even gave a small snort of laughter. The road suddenly became bumpy as the carriage wheels kept bouncing over little pebbles in the road.

"Oh come on, I'm pretty sure he will eventually tell us or we'll just figure it out ourselves"

Agatha said, flashing Chaddick a mischievous grin. Dot nodded. Chaddick just rolled his eyes and looked away.

"You can't figure it out! That's impossible!"

Chaddick yelped, clearly agitated. Hester snorted giving him a raised eyebrow.

"We're Sader's best, we can figure out anything! Like who the Captain of the Camelot Sea Militia loves!"

Hester yelled, raising her voice as they passed a few passerbys. They turned around with surprise and Chaddick immediately shushed her.

"Keep your voice down!"

He snapped, his face gloriously red. Hester and Anadil burst out laughing. Agatha even raised a eyebrow, amused. While Hester and Chaddick continued to bicker, with Anadil rolling her eyes at Hester's antics and Dot laughing out loud, Agatha let out a small smile and rested her head against the window pane.

Outside, the scenery was changing, as the carriage started to climb up a mountain. The road had become considerably more smooth and Agatha realized it was chisled stone when she looked down. The trees were trimmed neatly as they passed and guards were lined up on both sides of the road, wearing red coats and white breeches with golden pins on their chest. All stood as still as statues, watching the carriage carefully, holding their guns in one hand. Agatha returned her gaze to the front.

Her heart became still.

The castle of Camelot.

They were here.

 **AND SCENE!**

 **I know a lot of you guys were anticipating the arrival and I'm so sorry about making you guys wait. I know I stopped at another cliffhanger (it's my signature :D), but I PROMISE in the next chapter, some stuff will finally happen. This is because I'm trying to keep all my chapters 1,000 and above.**

 **Thank you so much for reading, remember to like, follow, and review!**

 **-princessthornofcassia**


	8. The Dinner

The carriage halted to a stop.

"We have arrived to the castle"

The coachmen said from the outside and immediately got off and opened the door. Chaddick got off and extended a hand.

"Appreciate the gesture, but I think I can get down myself"

Agatha said with a smile and leaped off the carriage steps and felt her feet hit the hard stone. Chaddick raised a eyebrow and signaled the coachmen to get the students's belongings. The coven followed suit and they gathered in front of the beautifully polished iron gates.

They all let out a breathe of awe.

In front of them stood one of the most majestic building Agatha ever seen.

The walls of the fortresses were made out of pure polished white marble, gleaming in the sunlight with a blinding glare. The turrets were deep navy blue, and glided with gold on the edges. Onto top of the biggest turret was a red flag, fluttering in the wind. And in the scarlet fabric, the lion that stood on it's hind legs never looked more magnificent. All around the castle, it was surrounded by lush green plains and small dots of the villages. She squinted her eyes and could see the vast expanse of the blue sea from beyond, where they had just been.

"No way."

Hester said, jaw slack. Dot was nearly sick with excitement, wearing a goofy smile on her face. Anadil had raised both her eyebrows, her red eyes wide. Even the rats perched at her shoulders were stoned with awe.

"Well, after you ladies"

Chaddick gave them a excited smile and swept his arm in a dramatic motion as the gates slowly drew open.

They stepped in.

* * *

If the outside was the most magnificent part of the Camelot castle Agatha had ever witnessed, then the interior was beyond that. The first thing Agatha had noticed was how huge the entrance hall was. It was far bigger then the one at the Academy. The entrance hall was a huge wide room with a huge domed ceiling above their heads, patterned with blue glass. There were fine marble pillars that held up the roof on both sides, lined up perfectly. The walls were painted white with golden patterns on it. There were servants flanked on both sides of the room, dressed in the perfect black and white attire. The floor was lined with carpet, brilliant red and embodied with the Camelot insignia on it.

Finally, at the very end, two beautifully carved white staircases ran up to another level. On that level was two ornately carved thrones, in lush red velvet and gold. No one was sitting on them.

Agatha couldn't believe what she was seeing, the expanse of the room, the luxuriousness of the furniture, somehow she was still waiting to get woken up.

Even Hester had no words to say, stunned by the grandness of the entrance hall.

Chaddick interrupted the silence by giving a slight cough.

"What did I say? Camelot never stops to take your breath away"

"I never could have imagined this to be real"

Agatha whispered softly, glancing at the huge portrait next to the thrones. On the portrait, she could make out two figures. Although it was blurry, Agatha could still see a man and a women painted on it. The man had features of golden hair and fair skin, with blue eyes. The women paled in comparison, with dull, tangled brown hair and simple brown eyes.

"Who is that?"

Hester asked, taking a look at the portrait at the end of the hall.

"That is King Arthur and Queen Guinevere, the late rulers of Camelot"

Chaddick replied, his voice unusually soft and less joyful. Agatha glanced over at him, raising a eyebrow.

"Why are you acting sad all of a sudden?"

She asked, watching Chaddick carefully. He turned around to look at her, as if suddenly snapping out of a trance.

"Just a bit tired from the ordeal, can we get someone to retrieve the students's belongings?"

Chaddick said, turning his attention away from Agatha. Agatha frowned and turned back to the coven.

"Looks like we should get some rest too, where may our quarters be?"

Chaddick whistled to a maid standing near by. The maid, a women wearing a simple fitted white dress and a grey apron, walked towards them. She had a mask of complete stillness and eerily reminded Agatha of a doll.

"By the way, Princess Sophie had requested to meet you four tonight at dinner in the dining hall. It starts by six o' clock, so I suggest you guys get ready later on"

The coven and Agatha turned towards Chaddick with raised eyebrows and shocked faces.

"Today?"

Agatha said in shock.

"Dinner?"

Dot whispered, raising her eyebrows.

"Dammit.."

Hester muttered underneath her breath.

The Captain gave them a cocksure smile, his teeth white.

"Don't worry, Princess Sophie is a extremely pleasant person. She is quite nice"

The maid next to them nodded too.

"Follow me, ladies!"

She said in a high voice.

With a sigh, the four all started to walk.

* * *

"Your rooms are in the left wing of the castle, on the seventh floor"

The maid said in the front of the group. They continued to walk down the hallway, with navy blue carpet at their feet, and golden doors flanking the sides. Occasionally, a portrait would be hung up on the wall, depicting the royalty of the castle. The interior of the castle was humongous, with many rooms and other hallways. The kitchen and servant quarters were on the the east side of the castle, second floor. The library, study and other rooms were stationed on the top floor, overlooking the grand expanse of the land around them. Royalty quarters were on the middle floor, the most secure and the most guarded, decorated lavishly. Agatha could only catch a small glimpse of the hallway before the maid scurried up the stairs.

Finally, on the seventh floor of the left wing of the castle, the maid walked to the end of the hall and placed a hand on the doorknob of a door. Breathless with anticipation, Agatha and the coven almost ran over, and watched the maid turn the doorknob.

"Bloody hell..."

Hester whispered as they burst into the room. The maid raised a eyebrow at Hester's choice of words and walked in the center of the room. The room was simple yet tastefully decorated, with four beds in the middle and glass paneled windows on all sides of room. The walls were light beige, and at each end of the bed was a small desk and a closet, with another room for the wash room. Soft light from the afternoon sun had washed the room in a golden tone, and Agatha couldn't help but feel a sharp pang of excitement. It was all happening.

"Now, ladies, I hope you get yourselves ready for your dinner with Prince Tedros and Princess Sophie at six o clock sharp, at the fourth floor!"

The four all gulped at the strict tone of the maid, who looked at them with hard look. The maid was probably older then them by a few years, for her green eyes held the glimmer of youth. Although, with her sharply tied up hair and slight frown, it aged her greatly.

"Your luggages will arrive shortly and there are appropriate dresses in the closet if you lack the attire for a formal dinner, I expect all of you four to clean up and look your best for the prince and princess. That will be all"

The maid spoke in a clipped and sharp tone, flaying the four with yet another emotionless stare, reminding Agatha of a strict mother.

She walked over and opened the door, before going out of the room, the maid glanced at the four.

"My name is Rose, and ask if you do have any questions"

They jumped at the door slam.

"She's a ray of sunshine"

Hester muttered, flipping her mop of hair over her shoulder before going over to the last bed, the furthest from all of them, before flopping onto the bed with a sigh of relief.

"Wow, this is soft"

Dot patted the mattress with her hand. She shrugged off her cape and walked over to the windows, watching the landscape.

"Why do we get this kind of treatment?"

Anadil sat on the bed and her three rats scurried over to the freshly poofed pillow, before sinking into it and huddled next to each other. Agatha walked over to her own and ran a hand on the cotton mattress.

"It's unbelievable, that they would provide something like this for us..."

"EYIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!"

Agatha whipped her head towards Dot, who giggled excitedly, one hand on her mouth as she shifted through her closet that was stationed at the end of her bed. Hester groaned and propped herself up, glaring at Dot.

"What in the world has gotten into you?"

Hester snapped, rubbing her tired eyes. In a dramatic motion, Dot swept her arm towards her closet. Agatha let out a small gasp.

Dresses.

So much dresses, in every color possible, each one grander and more beautiful then the last, cleanly hung next to each other. Many of them were in different styles, with short sleeves that ended at the elbows or ones that were long and ballooned out at the end of the sleeve. The fabrics was different, with some that looked like water glinting with shards of sunlight while others looked more heavier, knitted tighter. Not only that, but shawls and headwear were also stuck on the higher shelves, with white elbow length gloves and others. At the bottom of the closet, there was a colorful array of shoes, from heels to winter boots, all clean and pristine.

"Bloody hell!"

They turned their attention to Hester, who opened up her closet and found something similar to Dots.

"The King is really really generous..."

Anadil said while inspecting her own closet, and raising a eyebrow as she pulled out a red dress, with silver at the sleeves and on the bottom of the dress. The fabric was almost sheer, but the color was still very bright.

"This is hideous.."

Anadil sighed, looking at the sheer fabric and made a disgusted face.

"You think? Look at this!"

Hester cracked, showing her friend a baby pink dress that had ruffled lace sleeves and a voluminous skirt, with layers and layers of the odious pink. They both burst out laughing.

"I'll wear this pink monstrosity if you'll wear that!"

Hester wheezed, doubling over in laughter.

"When hell freezes over!"

Anadil replied back, still chuckling.

"I think you two are just being spiteful!"

Dot smiled as she swayed along with a sky blue dress that had white lace on it and silver jewels. Although, Agatha considered whether she should tell Dot that it might not fit, she took one look at Dot's face, glowing with happiness, like a child unwrapping a present on Christmas Eve and thought it was best probably not too. She sighed and peeked at her own closet and saw the beautiful dresses that greeted her, the colors of each shining together like some other wordly jewel, before feeling a pang of anxiety and closing the door.

Back at school, they wore uniforms, of the same white buttoned shirt and grey skirt or slacks. And Agatha had felt comfortable with that, not wearing anything that would draw attention to herself. It wasn't like she wanted attention from anyone, she had never loved the way she looked. All the other girls of the Academy somehow had been gifted with extraordinary features, and all of them look the same with slim legs and amazing curves. And there she was, a twig compared to all of them with pale limbs and a flat body. She liked how the shirt covered her shoulders and arms and often pulled the skirt down to cover her knees while other girls discreetly tried to pull their skirt up more. But here she was, in less then a hour or so, about to dine with the finest royalty of Camelot.

How could she face them?

How could she wear a dress and look into their eyes, only to see mirrors that she would often avoid?

Agatha gritted her teeth and snapped out of her thoughts, feeling pathetic about worrying how she looked when the very other day, she had taken down a blood thirsty pack of Winters.

She released a held in breathe and looked over at the coven, with Hester and Anadil in fits of laughter as they continued to pull out flashy and garish dresses while Dot swooned over the shoes and was pulling at the gloves she had tried on.

Agatha rolled her eyes and smiled to herself before opening the closet doors and quickly scanning the dresses, feeling discouraged at all of them. None of them seemed like her taste and all were very bright colors.

"We better get ready soon or else Rose will have our heads"

Agatha said, before Hester finally stopped laughing and rolled her eyes.

"I already hate her and it's only the first day!"

"She reminds me of Beatrix"

Anadil replied and looked over at the dresses, sighing at each one. One of her rats had scurried over and sniffed at the closet, and Anadil reached over to pull out a navy blue one with a scoop neck line with small amounts of lace and ruffles. Anadil grinned at her rat and stroked it's small head, mouthing a thank you before closing the door.

"In what way?"

Hester asked before deciding on the plainest and darkest dress she could find, a dark blood red with minimal decorations with long sleeves and a high neckline that went just below her chin.

"In the way that both of them are seriously annoying and that they have that kind of a face I would like to punch"

Hester gave a laugh and tugged off her cape, before starting to unlace her shoes. Agatha smirked and tried to find a plain dress she could wear. She finally decided on a silver dress with elbow length sleeves and silk fabric. It had no such fancy decorations expect for the small silver buttons at the sleeves and a small ruffle at the neckline. It was better then nothing.

Unlike the three of them, Dot had never been so exhilarated in her life, to wear such rich and expensive dresses only fit for royalty. While the three opted for simple dresses, she had dug through her entire closet with barely contained glee before deciding on a beautiful lavender dress, with three ruffles for each sleeve, lace for the neckline and gold ribbons that lined each ruffle of the dress. She then paired it with white gloves and a small fan she found while scrounging the closet.

They spent the rest of the time trying to look as put together as possible, combing back their hair and washing their faces. Some of the maids has offered to make them up, but Hester declined their offers much to the objections of Dot.

There was a small mirror in their room and the four crowded around there, grimacing and pulling at the tight fit of the corsets inside the dresses. Well, all expect Dot who kept smiling at the mirror and pinching her lips and cheeks.

Hester turned around and looked at Agatha carefully.

"Not bad, teacher's pet. You clean up nicely"

Agatha rolled her eyes, but gave a quick glance at herself in the mirror and immediately turned away, shame coloring her pale cheeks.

"Thats only because for the last few weeks I hadn't washed my face and my hair was a mess"

Agatha mumbled, already hating the constrictions of the dress. It was tight and unbearable, and she felt like someone was squeezing her waist.

"Hester looks like someone's grandmother"

Anadil said slyly to Agatha. Hester turned around and huffed with annoyance.

"Shut up! This is the only thing I can wear without gagging!"

Anadil continued to cackle and Hester rolled her eyes. Agatha shook her head at them before glancing at the clock, to see the big hand already past the six and the small hand on the five.

"Crap, we're already five minutes late! We have to go now!"

Unsure in their new shoes and attire, the three girls teetered around, the heels of the shoes causing them to stumble around like baby deer learning how to walk. Reaching the door, they turned around to see Dot still glancing at the mirror, fluffing at her hair and batting her eyelashes.

"DOT!"

They yelled and Dot jumped before giving them a sheepish grin.

"I'm coming!"

She replied and hurriedly ran over, in her heels as fast as she could. Finally reaching the door, the four girls burst out of the room before heading over to the dining hall.

It must have looked very peculiar, with four new girls running down the stairs, their dresses flying as they madly stumbled down each step, yelling out loud and waving their arms around like lunatics and Hester cursing even louder every time she stumbled, which by chance was a maids on the floors stopped to watch the sight as they passed, hiding smiles before continuing to work.

Arriving at the fourth floor, the four girls kept running towards the entrance of the dining hall, with was lit by glass cased lanterns. The double doors were ornately carved and the walls were a lush aquamarine, and they slowed down before starting to walk towards the doors. Running a hand through her hair, Agatha could hear murmured voices coming from within the room.

"It's already been five minutes and they haven't showed up yet!"

"Calm down Teddy, its not that big of a deal..."

"Of course it is! I asked for Sader's best students to come over here and I doubt that the best students would show up five minutes late for a very important dinner!"

"Cut them some slack, they traveled over here and must be very tired and exhausted. Not only that, but Chaddick told us that something happened during the way here..."

Agatha could make out two voices, one male and one female talking in the room. Hester must have heard it too, for she gave Agatha a wide eyed look as her hand gripped the doorknob. Agatha's heart thudded dangerously in her chest as Hester slowly turned the doorknob. Anadil and Dot held their breath as Hester started to open the door, and Agatha closed her eyes for a brief moment.

Hester opened the door in a wide arc and a warm gust of air greeted them. They all stood frozen in the doorway, gaping with mouths open. The two people Agatha had heard before stopped talking and seemed to freeze and stare at them too. There was one girl, whom Agatha assumed was Princess Sophie. The boy sitting next to her with the miffed expression on his face was probably Prince Tedros.

No one said anything for a long time and the only sound they heard was the fire crackling at the back of the room. The two groups stared at each other with mixed expressions ranging from absurdity to fear or even just plain shock.

Finally, Prince Tedros stood up and cleared his throat. He crossed his arms together and surveyed each and everyone of their faces, expression growing more annoyed.

"You four are all very late."

 **We will continue the awkward conversation in the next chapter (which will be pretty exciting)!**

 **Again, TAGATHA WILL HAPPEN (please be patient guys, these two weirdos need time to fall in love with each other)**

 **This chapter was so long and I'm trying to write 1,000~2,000 words long and this exceeded it (3,400!?). So I'm sorry but I hope this has been enough. Also, I hope you enjoyed Hesterdil in this chapter since..um...love is love? And I always adored Hester and Anadil, I thought they were the badasses I could never be.**

 **PLEASE STAY UNTIL THE NEXT CHAPTER (and like and review and follow)**

 **toodles**

 **-princessthornofcassia**


	9. Meeting the Royals

Even before the first course was served, the tension was already thick and palpable. Agatha had spent her time staring wordlessly around the dining hall, from the golden ornate walls to warm fire crackling in the background. The hall was brilliantly lit, with a diamond chandelier resting above their heads, flickering with candle but the prince and princess facing her, who looked at them in the same manner. Princess Sophie seemed rather curious then scared, her bright green eyes flicking to each one of their faces, a unsure but welcoming smile on her delicate blossom lips. Prince Tedros, on the other hand, had a different expression on his face, as he watched them carefully, inspecting and surveying.

In the light, Agatha had realized how attractive they both were. Princess Sophie was wearing a rose pink dress with ribbons stitched at the sleeves. Her golden hair was pined up, before cascading into curls. She looked like a princess directly from a storybook, with a heart shaped face and opalescent green eyes, flushed cheeks and peachy skin. Prince Tedros, on the other hand, despite turning out to be the snobbish and annoying prince Agatha expected him to be, looked remarkably like a younger version of his father. She could sense the pride and power he held from the distinguishable crystal blue eyes he had, the soft curls of golden hair and the way he held himself, from the high lift of his strong jaw to the way he sat straight and regal, almost as if he was already a king.

Finally, someone cleared their throat again. The four girls looked up to see Princess Sophie place her hands daintily on the table, next to the silverware, and look at them expectantly.

"So, please introduce yourselves!"

Agatha peered at Hester and Anadil, before looking back at Dot, before she faced Princess Sophie again.

"Well, your highness, I'm Agatha, this is Hester and Anadil and that's Dot"

Sophie gave a small laugh and Tedros squinted his eyes at the four of them again.

"Please, you can just address me by Sophie. After all, for the next month, we would be seeing each other a lot"

"So, Professor Sader picked you four to come here to Camelot?"

Tedros asked them with a raised brow, as if he found the fact that they were selected to come was completely baffling.

A small flame of anger suddenly ignited inside Agatha, and she felt the tentative smile drop on her face. Prince Tedros has looked at the four of them as if they were a mistake, as if they weren't up to his standards. Hester must have sensed it too, for she had curled her lips tightly together, almost as if she was holding the words she wanted to say back.

"Excuse me? Why are you acting so surprised that Sader chose us to go to Camelot?"

The coven let out a small gasp. They couldn't believe what she had just said to the Prince of Camelot. Agatha couldn't believe it either. Sophie raised both of her eyebrows and glanced at Tedros. Tedros frowned, as if so few people had the nerve to talk back to him in that demeanor. The dining hall was again suffocatingly silent and the servants at the back of the room had stopped and stared at Agatha too.

"Pardon me?"

Tedros finally said after a few moments. Agatha resisted the urge to roll her eyes and explode into a rant. She was tired, grumpy and hungry, and she most definitely did not want to deal with this pompous stuck up idiot.

"I said, why are you acting so surprised that Sader picked us to go?"

Agatha simply replied, bitting down on each word. She narrowed her eyes at him and gritted her teeth. The tension was growing stronger and the coven looked nervously from one to the other. Sophie was watching Tedros carefully, waiting for his answer.

"You four are just...not what I expected"

He responded back with gritted teeth.

"In what way? That you were expecting four huge macho dudes with big muscles wielding axes and all you got were four _girls_?"

Again, the table was silent. The fire crackled in the background and Dot was playing with the fork nervously, glancing at Agatha. Hester and Anadil watched their unofficial coven member with silence, either in shock or in awe to say something like that. Agatha felt a bead of sweat on her forehead and she quickly looked down, realizing she had damaged her reputation in front of Camelot royals. Sophie was peering at her curiously, and Agatha felt her cheeks flush with embarrassment.

Tedros let out a held in breath of air and sighed before looking at Agatha again.

"Fine, I had hoped Sader would assign four strong looking young men to protect Sophie and Camelot, not four girls!"

This time, the coven gasped along with Agatha. Sophie could sense the rising tension and anger and quickly signaled the servants to bring over the first course.

As the servants put down golden plates with a fresh piece of salmon and sauce drizzled on top of it, along with a white bowl of steaming pumpkin soup, the four girls all held matching glares at the Prince of Camelot. Finally, when the food was set, no one started to eat.

"Are you implying that girls are not as strong as boys?"

Agatha snapped, one fist on the table, her nails digging into her palm. It was exactly back at the Academy, he was one of those boys who was so pigheaded and stubborn and only believed that boys were more powerful that girls. She had encountered many of them, and he was not the last.

"I just want to make sure Sophie is well protected for her eighteenth birthday"

Tedros gave a irritated sigh before picking up his fork and stabbing it into the fish.

"So girls are not as strong as boys, is that it?"

This time, it was Hester who spoke up. She had a killer look in her eyes, like the one Agatha had seen on the ship when battling the Winters. Tedros opened his mouth to reply, but Hester continued.

"Because let me tell you, your highness, that one of us was able to come up with a plan that wiped out a whole pack of Winters!"

This time, Tedros's blue eyes had widened and he stopped cutting his fish. Even Sophie had looked at them anew, seeing the four girls as truly powerful and skilled warriors.

"Who?"

Tedros asked quietly, slowly putting down his fork and knife. Three fingers immediately pointed at Agatha. He looked at her with wide eyes, almost too shocked to speak.

"You?"

Agatha rolled her eyes and crossed her arms.

"Surprising, isn't it? A weak, skinny girl was able to defeat a pack of Winters! How interesting it is!"

The prince rolled his eyes.

"I meant, how?"

"Got the brilliant idea to pour oil on them and set them on fire, they were Aqua Winters, after all."

Hester interjected, giving Agatha a grin.

"Saved a lot of lives and helped us navigate safely to Camelot"

"It was the greatest thing I'd ever seen"

Anadil softly whispered, red eyes glowing from the fire.

"But...but...that's-"

Tedros realized he was spluttering and looked away from the four girls. Then, abruptly standing up, Tedros pushed his chair in and turned to Sophie.

"I need to speak to Chaddick and the Camelot Militia right now. If there are emerging threats from the Winters near Camelot, we have to start preparing."

Sophie sighed and glanced quickly at the four girls, who were eating happily, probably starving from the journey. Sophie turned back at Tedros and frowned.

"Fine, go talk. I'll finish dinner with them."

"Thank you so much"

Tedros gave her a grateful smile and patted her shoulder lightly.

With that, the prince of Camelot swiftly walked across the dining hall and out the double doors. The four girls watched him leave then turned to Sophie.

She sighed and smiled at them.

"Well, let's eat, shall we?"

* * *

The dinner started from started from delicious fresh salmon from the ports of Camelot to smooth, velvety chocolate cake with caramel drizzled on top. Sophie had never been away from the castle and to see four foreigners who all were so refreshingly different and unique in their own way was quite exciting. There were the two girls, Hester and Anadil, both strikingly fearsome in their own ways, but had the fiery attitude that she appreciated. Dot, sweet and whimsical, that Sophie found her quite pleasant. And finally, Agatha. Sophie knew she wasn't like the other girls. Although silent and brooding at times, she had the sharp wit and personality. Although, Sophie seemed to like her the best, there was something unsettling about the girl with the short raven black hair.

When the meal was finished, the four all bid their good byes to Sophie, who waved them good night. Walking along the carpeted hallways she knew so well, Sophie quickly walked up to her floor and into her bedroom. She sighed when opening the familiar pink walls, the pink canopy bed, the grand closet King Arthur had installed for her when Sophie had nothing to do, and the same old life she had known forever.

Closing the door, Sophie sighed and undid the luxurious hairstyle she had requested from the servants, the pins poking her scalp. Her blond hair cascaded in waves across her back, glowing in the warm candlelight. Sitting at the vanity, Sophie put the pins on the table and looked into the mirror. Her face, staring unwaveringly, faced her back.

A month from now.

Her birthday.

It could be the final birthday she would ever have.

Sophie pushed the sickeningly thought away, rubbing her eye. No matter what, Sophie would always have the tight and unescapable fear inside her, warning her of the day to come where the curse the Winter had cast upon her on her first birthday would finally come.

It loomed over her, like a dark shadow that stretched to infinity, blocking away any light inside her. No amount of dresses, shoes could ever distract her enough.

"Stop it, Sophie"

Sophie whispered to herself and bit her lip. She looked back into the mirror and smiled again. A perfect princess smile like the perfect princess she was. The one who was beautiful, wore pink dresses, had facials everyday, was the daughter King Arthur never had, was the sister Tedros never had, the one who had a life of envy and power. The thoughts fled away, and Sophie smiled bigger.

"How was dinner?"

She turned around as Tedros opened the door and closed it. He seemed tired and wrung out, with his golden curly hair tousled, probably from him rubbing it in frustration at the meeting.

"Good, the four girls were quite pleasant."

Tedros flopped onto Sophie's gigantic pink bed with a poof, before snorting to himself.

"Pleasant?"

"Yes, Tedros, _pleasant._ Thats because you weren't there to anger all four of them with your stupid remark about girls being weaker"

The prince groaned and rolled his eyes.

"I didn't mean it in that way."

Sophie raised one eyebrow before grabbing a golden brush and combed a strand of her hair.

"Well, they _certainly_ did not take it that way"

She could hear him sigh to himself and grumble something about girls before propping himself onto his shoulders and peering carefully at her.

"Soph, you know...if you don't like them, I'll just send a letter to Sader-"

"I like them all very much, Tedros."

Sophie gave Tedros a happy smile before continuing.

"I feel like all my life I never had close friends. All the ladies in waiting were too annoying and self obsessed, but these four girls, Agatha, Dot, Anadil and Hester...I finally feel like I have best friends"

"Am I not one of your best friends?"

Tedros asked with a hint of sarcasm, his mouth in a loose grin and his blue eyes twinkling. Sophie could sense the small part of him hurt from that remark, since he was used to having her all by himself until Sophie had met the new comers.

"Of course you will always be one of my best friends, we practically grew up together!"

Sophie laughed, softly putting the comb back onto the vanity. She walked over to the bed and sat next to Tedros. They both stayed silent, lost in their own thoughts.

"So, how was your day?"

Tedros sighed and inspected the golden comb on the vanity table. He rolled his head back and closed his eyes for a brief second before glancing back at Sophie.

"Dad made me see that Lord Marius's daughter. Pretty, but talked way too much about her closet and the expensive dresses in it, which come to think of it, reminds me a lot of you"

He pointed the comb at her and started to laugh. Sophie raised a eyebrow and pushed the comb away.

"I'm not like that!"

Tedros stared at her and nodded in dead pan seriousness.

"Of course, you talk about pretty dress _and_ the fact that my dad would pretty much buy you a castle because he likes better then me"

Sophie rolled her eyes, despite knowing fully well that King Arthur loved to buy pretty valuables for her all the time.

"You're absolutely horrible, Tedros."

"And you're spoiled."

He replied back with a sly grin, grinning at her the way he always did. From the moment they were little and grew up together, Tedros always had a knack to annoy her sometimes. It was one of the things of their relationship she liked so much. Tedros let out a tired groan before picking himself up from her bed, giving a yawn. He turned his head back and finally gave her a honest smile, one hand loosely on the brass doorknob of the door.

"Good night Sophie"

She smiled back at him and walked over to close it. He gave her a small kiss on the cheek for goodnight before going back to his quarters, which was at the other end of the hall.

"Good night Tedros."

Sophie said to herself and closed the door. Closing her eyes, she let out a yawn and knew that she was well beyond tired. But Sophie couldn't help but look forward to the next whole month, unlike before. She was finally going to have friends that she could relate too. Waiting for the maids to come over and untie the corset of her dress, Sophie looked out the window, into the starry night sky, her excitement growing bigger.

Tomorrow was certainly going to be interesting...

 **AND DONE!**

 **NICE! All of them finally meet and it's going really well! (sarcasm). I felt so happy writing this because it was a reunion for everyone expect they completely don't know each other at all. Of course, there's Tagatha (I guess, if glaring daggers at each other counts). I also sprinkled some Agaphie in between since that ship is also pretty amazing. And also it was PRIDE month and I just wanted to acknowledge that Agatha and Sophie and Tedros are bi, because that's something which is forgotten in some fan fictions and I wanted to stay true to the characters. I think that we shouldn't forget that fact and remember that. #loveislove**

 **BTW I chose to experiment with Tedros being in a "brotherly" role for Sophie because I thought that would be fun and unique for their character dynamic.**

 **I hope this was enough for some of you guys because a lot of you guys wanted the "Tagatha" to happen, let me tell you, the next chapter is going to pretty neat (i already pre written chapters before publishing) so please I PROMISE they will defiantly have some more moments** **together!**

 **THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING THIS FANFICTION. FOLLOW, LIKE AND REVIEW!**

 **tooooooooodddlllleeesssssss**

 **princessthornofcassia**


	10. Prince of Camelot

**Wait, whats this?**

 **I'm back from the dead, people!**

 **That's right, CHAPTER 10!**

 **I'm really sorry I haven't updated in such a long time, I was so caught up with school and I kind of given up on this fanfiction. I promise, I will update every week from now and finish up this fic, don't worry. Thank you so much for the kind words, it really motivated me to do this. Plus, I love this fic so much, and I wanted to finish it up!**

 **So, what are you waiting for?**

 **Here we go! :D**

The silk sheets were strangely uncomfortable for Agatha when she woke up from her new bed in Camelot castle. Laying in the no doubt expensive bedsheets, Agatha stared at the ceiling, at the cream colored walls and the sound of her three roommate's breathing in tandem.

What a day yesterday had been.

Moving across the ocean from the Academy to Camelot.

Meeting Princess Sophie and that sexist jerk of a prince. Thomas? Theodore?

 _Tedros._

Just thinking of the name made Agatha's mood sour like milk. She just didn't get it, how someone could think gender should dictate strength. Agatha hadn't expected such backward thinking from someone in such a high position of power. But then again, who did she expect the Prince of Camelot to act like?

Maybe she could try to challenge him to a duel. See the priceless expression on his face when he ends up on the floor, a sword pointed directly at his neck. Wouldn't that be just dandy?

Letting out a bored yawn, Agatha propped herself up, blinking wearily at her surroundings. Something just didn't feel right about the place. Everything was too new, too expensive, too _perfect_. From the pale pastel curtains to the glass windows to the individual nightstands, it was a shocking comparison to the Academy dorms. Agatha just wasn't used to it yet.

Since none of her friends were up yet, Agatha decided to go explore the castle and the place she would call home for the next month. _Next month. Sophie's birthday. The curse._ The words swirled around in her head building up a huge muddled pile of worry inside her. Pushing the thoughts away, she quickly slipped out of the delicate nightgown and into some proper clothing for once, a white cotton shirt with some charcoal grey slacks along with a sturdy pair of leather boats. Slipping on a nice woolen cloak, Agatha stepped out of the room.

The interior of the castle was quiet. As in really, really quiet. There were only a few rays of sunlight coming in from the glass ceiling, and the hallways were still dark. Tip toeing down the flight of stairs, Agatha could really see the grandness of each floor, from the lush red carpets with gold trimmings to the cerulean blue walls. There were great long windows flanking each floor, and waxy oil portraits of royalty hanging on walls. It must have been exhilarating growing up in a huge place like this. Agatha briefly wondered whether Sophie and Tedros spent their childhood playing hide and seeking in these shadowed hallways, finding secret passages and getting scolded for knocking over a expensive vase. They probably had the best tutors from all over the lands to educate them, spent summer running around gardens, jumping into the fountains and being scolded again for getting the carpet wet.

Agatha would have given anything for something like that.

Not that her life was totally miserable. According to the orphanage, Agatha was found in a dirty, little basket just past the trading posts, right off the sides of the road where traders from other countries would come in. Someone must have spotted her because they took her to the little orphanage located near the Woods. From there, Agatha grew up with other kids with the same exact story: tossed away or abandoned. Most of the workers were nice, providing the children with love as best as they could, teaching them how to read and hoping for each and everyone of them to go into a loving home.

The kids were a different story. It wasn't that Agatha _despised_ all of them, it was just the fact she was singled out as different. No one would talk to her, and during play time, Agatha resorted to sitting by the straggly weeds, reading some old book and catching grass hoppers. This continued for years until Agatha was ten, because someone walked in and changed her entire life.

Sader had just came back from Avalon tending business and had dropped by, looking for one child, specifically Agatha. It had shocked the caretakers and prompted them to ask about the other kids, but for some reason, perhaps magic, Sader had set his heart on Agatha. So she had packed up her one motley book of rhyming, a glass jar for collecting grass hoppers, and a heart full of hope when she made her bed and smoothed out the quilts, walking silently by all the gawking children, slowly climbing down the stairs, meeting the caretaker's surprised glances and remembering the vivid expensive green suit Sader was wearing, the glassy but kind eyes and his smile.

A smile that promised Agatha a better life.

With tearful hugs and kisses from all the caretakers, half hearted goodbyes from the children, Agatha had taken Sader's gloved hands and walked out of the orphanage.

Agatha almost tripped when she realized that she was on the ground floor. Breaking away from her reverie, Agatha navigated the entrance hall, still dazed and lost from the sudden plunge into the past. When she reached to the back of the castle, Agatha could see a smaller structure of a building, not quite shabby but still in good shape. Right next to that building was a large stable. Like a curious cat, Agatha walked along the cobbled roads, taking in the fantastic view of the dark green pine trees surrounding her and the early light of the sun beginning to rise. Approaching the building, she hesitantly put one hand on the iron door and pushed.

It was a training hall. From the huge expanse of the room, to the wall of weapons and discarded dummies stuffed with hay, to the figure throwing knives at the target.

Wait, what?

Squinting her eyes, Agatha slowly walked into the room with light footsteps, brushing the edges of the wall. When she was a comfortable distance away, she could make out a well muscled man with toned arms, a sturdy stance wearing well made leather boats, cotton breaches and a light collared shirt. The figure had tan skin and golden hair in the most brilliant hue.

Hair that she remembered from last night's dinner, that weird golden hue that glowed almost orange from the fireplace when she was busy glaring at him. The hair that belonged too...

Oh no.

Before she had time to move, Tedros had twisted his body to throw another knife and immediately spotted her. His blue eyes went wide. The knife slipped out of his hand. It clattered to the wooden floors. The two stared at each other, unsure of what to do.

"You almost scared me to death."

Tedros finally replied in a even, slightly bothered tone, before bending over to pick up the knife. Agatha raised one eyebrow and took a few steps away.

"Unfortunately, you are still very much alive."

Agatha groused, before crossing her arms. Tedros, the _nerve_ of him, gave a bemused smirk at that before turning around to face her, one hand still holding the short blunt dagger.

"What are you doing here?"

Tedros asked her, although it sounded more like a demand rather then a question, while fiddling around with one of the knives. Agatha shrugged, leaning against the cool stone wall.

"Was about to ask you the same thing"

Considering that for a moment, Tedros turned around again, holding one arm behind his head and squinting at the target in front of him. Swiftly stepping forward, Tedros flung the knife towards the target, the dagger smoothly cutting into the air before hitting the target, just one ring below the center. The prince watched the dagger for a split second before turning around to face Agatha.

"I always train early in the morning. It helps me concentrate, if you will"

He reached for another dagger, twirling it around in his hands, before getting back into a stance.

"You know, if you hold your arm little bit to the left, the knife would probably hit bulls eye."

Tedros turned around, his voice growing annoyed at that.

"What do you mean? Have you done this before?"

The way the prince regarded Agatha, the way he said it in utter disbelief brushed Agatha the wrong way. She furrowed her brows and pushed herself off the way. Making her way to Tedros and still holding a icy glare, Agatha reached into the basket for a knife. Holding the knife behind her head, she leapt forward and felt the hilt release from her hands, watched the knife sail into the air, directly at the target and cut through the thick burlap.

Bullseye.

"As a matter of fact, _yes_ I have done this before."

They both watched the knife sink into the burlap, before Agatha gave a innocent smile at Tedros, who's face only grew with more annoyance, his cheeks dusted slightly red. He crossed his arms and almost _pouted_ , reminding Agatha of a little boy who was being scolded. She burst out laughing, watching in amusement as Tedros glared at her again.

"Why? Is the great Prince of Camelot jealous that a _girl_ can throw knives better then him?"

"No! Shut up!"

Agatha snorted at that, still studying Tedros. She could admit that this was actually...kind of _fun_ , watching Tedros get flustered and unable to talk in full sentences. She should annoy him more. It was much better then actually talking to him.

"Then why don't you prove it, huh? That the great Prince of Camelot can throw knives better then a lowly girl?"

Tedros gave out a annoyed huff and got into a throwing position, eyes trained determinedly at the target. He narrowed his eyes in concentration, bit his lip and let go of the knife. They both watched the knife fly through the air and hit the target...two rings away from bullseye.

Agatha cackled, watching Tedros's face go cherry red and he let out a groan of frustration.

"That wasn't fair! You were distracting me!"

Tedros snapped, wiping away the sweat from his forehead. His hair was fluffier then usual, gleaming light in the sun.

"And in which way was I annoying you?"

Agatha replied back smoothly, a bemused grin on her face, once she was done laughing. Tedros rolled his eyes.

"Just because you're better at throwing knives doesn't mean you're better at me in other types of combat!"

The absurd arrogant way Tedros has said that sentence caused Agatha to snort again.

"What are you suggesting? That we compete against each other and figure out who's better in what?"

To her surprise, Tedros actually smiled at that, his eyes shining with a new light before extending out a hand to Agatha.

"Why not? I bet you could use some training."

She rolled her eyes and firmly accepting Tedros's outstretched hand, matching his determined stare and sly smile.

"We'll see about that, Prince of Camelot."

 **AND SCENE**

 **Good, old Tagatha :)**

 **Well, let's get this thing moving again, shall we?**

 **I'm so excited for the next few chapters following what happens in Camelot. Originally, Agatha was supposed to be the one training, but I switched it up a little but oh well.**

 **I tried my very best to emulate Tagatha banter but also add my own twist to it, so I liked the idea of Agatha actually teasing Tedros instead of flat out insulting him, although there will be that too.**

 **Anyways, I hope you liked it!**

 **Like, review and follow!**

 **-princessthornofcassia**


	11. Two Weeks

**CABINET BATTLE :DDDDDDDDD (reference anyone?)**

"And over there leads to the library and the Council Hall!"

Sophie's melodic voice broke Agatha out her thoughts as she toured the four girls around the castle. It had been a long tour, with Sophie guiding them around each twist and turn of the castle. And given, Camelot was a really big castle. Dot managed to stifle a yawn beside her, pretending to cough.

"This is so exciting. I've never seen anything like this before."

Hester replied to Sophie in a monotone, flat voice. Anadil softly laughed underneath her breath, and Sophie frowned slightly. She raised one delicate eyebrow, acknowledging the group of girls, before breaking into a smile.

"I gather you four might be feeling a little bit restless?"

"How did you notice?"

Hester deadpanned, and Sophie frowned. Agatha smirked, watching the interaction. This month was going to be very interesting.

"It's not that we aren't enjoying this tour, which we are, but it's just the fact that we aren't doing anything... _useful_ , you know? Like maybe we should meet with the palace guards or discuss plans with the Camelot Militia, just to help make sure you're going to be safe"

Agatha said, giving the best, most friendly smile she could muster at Sophie. Sophie's face lit up, like almost a candle flickering to life, and she nodded eagerly.

"Of course, I hadn't realized that. In fact, I'm sure there is a meeting right now in the Council Hall you four should attend!"

With that, earning a approving grin from Hester, Agatha followed Sophie down the majestic hallway, feeling the softness of carpet as she padded along, the warm glow of the candlelight, they arrived in front of a double set of doors with beautiful gold markings carved around it. Camelot castle never fails to take Agatha's breathe away. Sophie gave a tentative knock on the door and someone replied a cut "Come in".

She pushed open both of the doors to reveal a majestic room, the walls painted the same cerulean blue that covers the other walls of the castle, a round, sleek marble table surrounded by a bunch of middle aged men who Agatha didn't know. On the table lay tons of maps all sprawled out, some ink bottles, and leather bound books. Of course, at the very front of the table sat the, albeit frustrated looking, Prince of Camelot himself.

His mad expression softened at the sight of Sophie and the furrow in his dark brows lessened.

"Sophie? What are you doing here?"

He asked in a surprised voice. Sophie smiled proudly and gestured the four other girls in, shocking Tedros.

"I think that Agatha, Hester, Anadil and Dot should participate in not only this military meeting, but all of the meetings during their time here."

The middle aged men all glanced at each other in shock, with raised eyebrows and hushed whispers. Tedros stared from his seat, unmoving, his gaze sweeping to Sophie, Hester, Anadil and Agatha. Agatha pressed a meaningful look back, tilting her head and furrowing her eyebrows and Tedros let out a sigh of defeat.

"Why not?"

He answered loosely, and Sophie grinned excitedly. She softly pushed the four of them further into the room and put one hand on the doorknob.

"Thank you so much!"

Sophie replied in a chirpy tone before walking out of the room. The four girls stared back at Tedros, not sure what to do. Even Hester seemed to be uncomfortable, glaring at nothing in particular, the tattoo on her neck blazing red.

"Uh-um, have a seat."

Tedros said from the front of the room. Quickly, the four girls shuffled into the spare seats, before glancing awkwardly back at Tedros. He cleared his throat, frowning slightly before motioning to the map in front of him.

"As we were discussing before, there were a plethora of attacks from the Winters in the Murmuring mountains, which is extremely alarming, given to how close it is with Camelot."

"What do you wish to do about it, Prince Tedros?"

The man next to Tedros answered in a gruff voice. He had tan, weathered skin no doubt from sailing into harsh weather and sunlight. He had a dark purple suit with golden lining and a lieu of medals on his chest.

"Actually General Rufus, as a matter of fact, I want to propose a series of sub attacks on separate parts of that South Peninsula. This way, we can weaken the Winter Clan's small militia bases"

There were a rousing of murmured approval and Tedros smiled smugly, tapping his fingers on the sleek marble table. Agatha frowned and snorted silently, appalled by two things. One, how goddamn _arrogant_ that Tedros was. Two, was he actually _stupid_? Hearing a small laugh from the left of her, she turned around to see Hester and Anadil trying to keep their faces serious. Agatha nudged Hester and she turned around, expression incredulous.

"Prince Tedros, how do you wish to attack the militia bases? It will take time to transfer our men there, while keeping our identity hidden. We are going to need money, weapons and a transportation over the rocky terrain."

Another general in green had shot up on Tedros's left. He furrowed his brows, still thinking before a voice piped up.

"You guys have _got to be_ kidding me."

Everyone turned around to face the four girls at the back of the room, astounded by their sudden brashness. Tedros gave a confident laugh facing Agatha.

"Do you have a better idea?"

Agatha mirrored his smug smile and air, crossing both arms over her chest.

"In fact, I do."

"Do you care to tell the rest of us?"

Tedros gestured to all the generals in the room, who looked at the new girl with shock or intrigue. Agatha took a deep breath and put both hands on the table.

"Do nothing."

The room erupted in a frenzy, with the outcries of shock and some generals even laughed. Agatha didn't drop her smile and so didn't the coven. Tedros had chuckled and cocked his head back at Agatha.

"Excuse me? Do nothing? Did you hit your head or something when going down the stairs?"

Tedros replied back, causing a few more amused chuckles out of the generals.

"I don't know, maybe you hit yours!"

Agatha snapped back, crossing her arms. All the generals regarded the four coyly, as if for the first time, they recognized what the four girls could be capable off.

Tedros's easy smile suddenly dropped and he raised a eyebrow. The playful, almost light mood quickly darkened.

"How could we do nothing? These are _Winters_ we are talking about, for Gods sake. _Winters._ They must be stopped as soon as possible"

The room was filled with a sense of fear and urgency and Agatha can hear the light playfulness drain out of Tedros's voice.

"Do that and end up with Camelot castle destroyed in the next few months, your villages burnt down and your people taken as prisoners"

Hester retorted back, backing up Agatha's point. The room filled with another huge outcry and Anadil laughed, fist bumping Hester.

"What do you mean?"

General Rufus said slowly, concern causing the creases in his face to deepen.

"Have you ever seen a Winter? Any of you? Up close and about to kill you?"

Hester continued slowly, and watched all the generals go quiet with uncertainty. Tedros watched them in silence. Dot piped up next in a completely cheery tone unlike the melancholy mood.

"Are you guys going to charge at them head on?"

"No-no! Of course not. We'll stage-"

Anadil scoffed and the whole room turned to the silent albino who had was watching the whole commotion with a strange and mysterious gaze. She surveyed every single general with slowly, her unique red eyes glassy and dangerous.

"You can go attack the Winters. You can get your men to each of these military bases and try to take it. You will also end up dead if you do that. Like Dot said, how can you charge the enemy without even knowing how to fight them? These are Winters, beings that we once thought were myths. And Winters are deadly. You're going against beings here who can manipulate the every elements around you."

"My plan is to send a small group over to these military bases and observe these Winters. Find the weak spots. This way we can devise a plan to take down the Winters once we actually know what to do."

Agatha replied after Anadil and stood up, surveying the room. She gave Tedros a pointed look and grabbed the map at the center of the table. Setting the map down, Agatha put her finger on the Camelot castle.

"It'll be at least a two day trip to take a ship from here to the Murmuring Mountains and maybe a five or six day trek to these military spots. All we need is to stay discreet and gather information."

Agatha looked up at the generals and pushed the map in front of them.

"So, what do you say?"

General Rufus had a impressed look and he smiled at Agatha, in a proud way. It was the way Sader smiled at her, and Agatha felt a strange twitch of pride.

"We had spend months trying to figure out ways, yet it takes you four girls to come up with a brilliant plan and quickly. Sader was very wise to send the four of you here. I think, it would you four should also go to the Murmuring Mountains."

Agatha raised her eyebrows and whirled around to face the coven who mirrored her shocked expression. General Rufus raised a eyebrow and looked at the four of them, seeing the hesitancy.

"Unless...you four don't have to go. It's rather dangerous, after all."

"No! No, it's just the fact we thought we had to stay here with Sophie and all. But I'm willing to go. After all, it was my idea"

Agatha hastily said back and Hester quickly shot up from her seat.

"Agatha, you realize Sader wants you alive, right? You have to stay here and protect Sophie from the curse, not go off and kill yourself trying to fight Winters!"

Agatha rolled her eyes and looked back at General Rufus.

"Yes, but what am I going to accomplish here in the castle? We can try stopping the Winters and solve this problem once and for all! Besides, Sophie was cursed by a Winter and maybe we can find out more about that curse!"

Hester sighed and frowned.

"I forgot how weirdly stubborn you are. No wonder Sader likes you so much. You do too much for other people and not enough for yourself"

Agatha raised one eyebrow and looked at Hester.

"Your point?"

Hester sighed again and put one hand on Agatha's shoulder, her confident signature grin in place.

"Im going with you, teacher's pet. You wouldn't last a day there without me!"

Agatha returned her smile and turned back at General Rufus. He nodded and started to talk to Tedros, who was watching her with a strange look. He was frowning and almost thinking about something like something else was bothering him.

Suddenly, Anadil got out her seat and placed a worried hand on Hester's shoulder. She had a worried look in her red eyes and her skin could have been paler, if it was possible.

"Hester, are you crazy? You're going to get killed there!"

For a moment, Agatha could see the vulnerability that Hester only showed with Anadil and she turned around to face Anadil entirely.

"Don't worry, Ani. I'm going to be fine. Plus, you and Dot have to stay here and help. We will be sending you messages and you two have to rally other kingdoms in order to prepare."

Anadil frowned slightly, and she shook Hester.

"You promise you'll be safe? Right?"

Hester rolled her eyes in a exasperated way, before smiling softly at Anadil.

"I promise."

The two girls shared smiles, and Agatha noticed that it was way more intimate then she expected. There was something going on that she couldn't really place. Dot was watching the three with wide brown eyes and a concerned expression.

"Are you serious about this? I mean, what if.."

She trailed off and quickly tucked a strand of curly brown hair behind her ear. Hester sighed, and in a tone that wasn't harsh or sarcastic like before, she put her other hand on Dot.

"We are going to be fine. I mean, it's me and Agatha. I'm pretty sure we can handle ourselves! Plus, you have to help Ani with everything here. And Sophie too!"

Dot smiled in relief, but there was still a knot of worry in her facial expression. She gave a impish expression.

"Group hug?"

Dot said in a innocent voice. Hester frowned and Anadil gave a laugh. She frowned and begrudgingly uncrossed her arms.

"Oh goddamnit, fine."

Dot let out a cheer and wrapped her arms and Hester and Anadil. Hester stiffened at the close contact but didn't say anything, a amused smirk still on her face. She saw Agatha watching them and raised a meaningful eyebrow.

"Agatha. You have to join too."

Agatha shook her head and took a step back.

"I'll pass-"

Hester grabbed her arm and pulled Agatha into the hug. She gave out a snort of laughter and rolled her eyes.

"I thought you hated hugs, Hester!"

"Oh, shut up!"

General Rufus cleared his throat and the four girls broke apart. He was watching the four of them with a warm sense of amusement and kindness.

"I didn't mean to interrupt, but I'm here to notify you two that we will be leaving in around two weeks. We must wait for the rainy season to die down, before we can safely travel"

Agatha felt a twinge of nervousness in her stomach, but smiled nonetheless.

"Great. Two weeks."

 **UPDATE!**

 **I really need more Agatha doing badass things like seeking off to ports and killing Winters. And I really like writing Hester and Agatha working together. So there's that.**

 **Don't worry, Sophie might seen like she isn't doing anything. Believe me, I have planned out everything. Also don't worry, Tedros will also be doing badass things too.**

 **Hope you enjoyed the update!**

 **Also, FINALS :O are coming up, so I might not update next week .Just a disclaimer.**

 **OK bye! 👋**

 **-princessthornofcassia**


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